This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Study: Visual function similar in blue, UV-light filtering IOLs
There were no significant differences in visual acuity or macular changes between eyes implanted with UV- or blue-light filtering intraocular lenses, according a study recently published in Optometry & Vision Science.
Lavric and colleagues conducted a comparative, single-center based, nonrandomized cohort study to evaluate the differences in visual function, macular changes and subjective differences between the two lenses.
Participants included 30 patients with uncomplicated age-related cataract who underwent phacoemulsification and IOL implantation. Each patient had a UV-light filtering IOL (AcrySof SA60AT, Alcon) implanted in one eye and a blue-light filtering IOL (AcrySof IQ SN60WF, Alcon) implanted in the other.
Researchers measured subjective visual quality via the National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire, as well as best-corrected visual acuity, color discrimination and contrast sensitivity, according to the study. Macular findings were measured with optical coherence tomography (3D OCT-100, Topcon).
Results showed no significant differences between color vision changes, contrast sensitivity, central macular thickness or total macular volume. Researchers noted a borderline statistically significant difference in mean best-corrected visual acuity. Additionally, three eyes developed an epiretinal membrane and six eyes developed early signs of age-related macular degeneration in both IOL groups, according to the study.
"The results of this study show no significant difference in visual function between the two IOL groups," the authors concluded. "After more than 2 years of follow-up, no benefit of macular protection was proven in eyes with blue-light filtering IOLs. Although most patients reported a subjective difference between the eyes with different IOLs, the visual-targeting quality of life was not affected.
"We believe that patients should be warned of a possible difference in visual perception before implantation of a blue-light filtering IOL in one eye and a UV-light filtering IOL in the fellow eye," they continued. "Larger and long-term clinical studies are needed to evaluate hypothetical retinal protection using a blue-light filtering IOL."
Disclosure: The authors have no relevant financial disclosures.