EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/129516
May 2013 In the journal … May 2013 Visual outcome of cataract surgery Mats Lundström, MD, Peter Barry, FRCS, Ype Henry, MD, Paul Rosen, FRCS, Ulf Stenevi, MD In this study, investigators used data from the European Registry of Quality Outcomes for Cataract and Refractive Surgery database to evaluate visual results following cataract surgery in 15 European countries. When they analyzed the data from 256 cataract extractions, they determined that best vision was attained by those in the 40- to 74-year age range. They also found that a higher percentage of men reached the 20/20 or greater mark than women. Investigators determined that 94.3% of patients ultimately reached 20/40 corrected distance visual acuity or better and that 61.3% reached the 20/20 level, leading them to conclude that results were excellent. Factors such as ocular comorbidity, complex surgery, and surgical or short-term postoperative complications had the greatest influence on outcomes, although age and sex were also elements. Technique: Femtosecond laser cataract surgery in infants H. Burkhard Dick, MD, Tim Schultz, MD Laser cataract surgery has been proving itself viable for adult patients, but what about for infants? Investigators here described how they used the femtosecond laser to perform cataract surgery in three congenital cataract patients ranging in age from 2 to 9 months old. The laser was used to make the anterior capsulotomy as well as to divide the lens. With the aid of the fluid-filled interface, investigators were also able to redock the laser and perform posterior capsulotomy without incident. Investigators were able to remove both anterior and posterior capsule disks without any tears resulting. They concluded that for these very young, pediatric cataract patients, the laser technique can enhance the quality of the surgery. Review/update: Postoperative pain after cataract surgery Susanna Porela-Tiihonen, BM, Kai Kaarniranta, MD, Hannu Kokki, MD Despite the fact that cataract surgery is done every day, relatively little is known about resulting postoperative pain. In this review involving 21 randomized controlled trials, when investigators considered reports of postoperative pain they found most patients had little or no discomfort following surgery. However, moderate and severe pain lingering for several weeks was reported in some studies. Patients in such cases were treated with medication such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, and paracetamol. Other pain relief approaches involved perioperative intraocular injections, use of eye pads following surgery, and further surgical techniques. The conclusion reached here was that in some patients, the literature indicates that postoperative pain after cataract surgery is significant and that treatment to alleviate this as well as counseling should be provided. Finally... An Easy AND Comprehensive EMR for Ophthalmology Key Features Average Implementation Time: 90 days No Cost diagnostic machine & practice management integrations. Comprehensive Imaging System included. Server Sync increases remote office productivity & eliminates outages caused by unreliable Internet connections. Subspecialty content included for Retina, Cornea, Pediatrics, & Glaucoma. Scalable to any practice size. EyeWorld @EWNews Keep up on the latest in ophthalmology! Follow EyeWorld on Twitter at twitter.com/EWNews www.EyeMDEMR.com (877) 2 EYE EMR