Making Cataract Surgery Refractive Surgery Eric E. Schmidt, O.D. Bladen Eye Center Elizabethtown, NC
Cataract Surgery It is considered to be the most successful surgery in the world! SO….. Why do we want to mess with success? What’s all the fuss about? What do we really want to achieve?
Goals Of Surgery Visual improvement – maximum achievable visual acuity 20/20 w/out eyeglasses! No anisometropia Remember though; 20/20 may not always be possible Plano may not always be the best desired end point
Uncorrected 20/20 begins with you Choosing the right surgeon Counseling your patient Keep abreast of “new stuff” Guide your surgeon to become proficient at “new stuff” Keep your staff up-to-date on the “new stuff” Identify patients who would benefit from “new stuff” You need to understand that cataract surgery should be considered refractive surgery
Why Bother With Co-Management? Enhance px success Continuity of care Logistic concerns They are your patients Builds practice image It is certainly not a monetary issue!!!
Pre-operative procedures Set realistic goals for each individual patient Perform detailed binocular refraction Determine desired endpoint for the patient’s visual system Choose the best procedure to achieve this Perform all the necessary pre-op tests –A-Scan –PAM –BAT –DFE –Retinal imaging –Wavefront testing
Pre-operative management Px counseling –Describe the procedure, anesthesia –Describe the post-op course Choose the surgeon Schedule the appt Pre-op regimen Prescribe the pre-op meds Discuss case w/ surgeon
A-Scan Biometry- this is the key to choosing the correct IOL power. IOL chosen based on desired endpoint refraction, axial length and keratometry A-Scan ultrasound – very easy to perform CPT code – Should this be done by the referring OD?
IOL MASTER Zeiss Not ultrasonography High resolution partial coherence interferometry Easy to perform (<1minute, non-contact) Yields extremely precise axial length (0.02mm), white-to-white, AC depth (+/- 0.1mm) and keratometry Costs more, same reimbursement, but allows us to pinpoint endpoint refractive error.
IOL MASTER Traditional SRK and Holladay Formulas, but.. Haigis formula – –Surgeon specific –IOL specific –Allows a new level of mathematical flexibility in calculating IOL power Greatly increases accuracy and precision as compared to A-scan
IOL Master This renders a 5-fold increase in accuracy Solves some A-scan issues –Posterior staphyloma –Long eyes (>24.5mm) –Short eyes (<22mm) –Silicone oil –Asteroid hyalosis
Cataract Surgery- We’ve Come A Long Way Baby! ICCE ECCE Phacoemulsification No-stitch, no patch
Surgical Incisions Is one type really better than another? Scleral tunnel Clear cornea Micro-incision (1mm)
Phacoemulsification No new advances in this ; until now! 2 new instruments Less energy, less heat No need for irrigation Sleeveless allows for micro-incisions Capsulorhexis technique is very important
Current Phaco Energy Sources Ultrasound –Efficiently emulsifies cataracts of any hardness –Rapid motion of phaco tip creates friction/heat Laser –Efficiently emulsifies only +1 or +2 cataracts –Rests between laser bursts allow cooling Sonic –Efficiently emulsifies only +1 or +2 cataracts –Less tip motion and friction/heat than ultrasound
Micro-incisions need micro IOL!!! Super thin IOL Injectable IOL “Liquid” IOL –Lens refilling procedure
Post-operative regimen Not much new to talk about EXCEPT… –The incidence rate of endophthalmitis is tripling 0.66% in clear cornea 0.25% in scleral tunnel –Can we prevent this? –Why is this happening?
Post-operative regimen Antibiotic – 4 th generation fluoroquinolone QID Steroid – prednisolone acetate 1% QID (or more) NSAID Intraocular steroid – Dex DSS Post-op visits –1 day –1 week –3-4 weeks (DFE)
Clear Corneal Incisions Don’t Leak… They Suck !!!!
Endophthalmitis Increase due to natural endogenous flora from lids 75-90% gram positives –Staph. Epidermidis (42%) –Staph. Aureus,Enterococcus Pay close attention to the lids pre- and post-operatively
To reduce endophthalmitis incidence Fluoroquinolone QID 4 days prior to surgery Lid scrubs if needed Artificial tears Betadine prep peri-operatively May need to leave px on topical antibiotics longer post-operatively Orals ??
Post-op concerns Glare and haloes Internal reflections Anisometropia 2 nd eye management Post. Capsule opacification
What About Astigmatism? Toric IOL Astigmatic Keratotomy Who are candidates? Are there refractive limitations? What can the patient (and us ) realistically expect?
Toric IOL STAAR Surgical silicone plate lens Corrects 1.4 – 2.3 D of cyl at the spectacle plane Corrects the astigmatism at the nodal point Lessens distortion Better qualitative visual acuity Improved contrast sensitivity There are some axis considerations
Toric IOL Success Depends upon: –Surgical skill – the surgery must be astigmatically neutral –Proper IOL positioning –IOL maintaining a stable position in the bag –Aggressive post-operative monitoring
Toric IOL Post-op considerations –Must be able to detect IOL rotation –If this occurs it must be corrected by 3 weeks –IOL may have to be rotated by surgeon –Patient must be dilated at 2 weeks to detect this
Astigmatic keratotomy Relaxing incision made nasally Shallow (<150 microns) Useful for pre-operative WTR cylinder to cylinder How effective is it?
Astigmatic Keratotomy When should you recommend it? –Plano in other eye –Px does not like to wear specs –CL wearer –Those “picky” patients –WTR cylinder (170 – 010) –High cylinder pxs Post-op considerations
Astigmatic keratotomy What are the drawbacks? –Poor predictability –Limited range of correction –Post-operative FB sensation
So an optometrists walks into an exam room to see a post-op px O.D.- How’re those eyes doing Mr. Jones? Px – Not so great. O.D. – Whaddaya mean, not so great? You’re seeing 20/20 in each eye without glasses! Px – Yeah, but I can’t see my newspaper!
What to do about presbyopia? Monovision IOL Presbyopic Lens Exchange (PRELEX) Multifocal IOL Accommodating IOL
Multifocal IOL options Monovision Refractive Diffractive Accommodative
The Ideal Multifocal IOL Patient Baby Boomer –50’s to the mid 60’s –Cataract starting to compromise quality of vision –Active lifestyle –Concerned about their appearance & ‘quality of life’ Do not want to ‘get old’ Spending billions on lifestyle enhancing procedures –Realistic Expectations –Motivated –Asks lots of questions
Who’s A Candidate? / Clinical Hyperopic Loss of accommodation Cataract Unilateral traumatic cataract Congenital cataract Astigmatism (can be corrected) High myopes (surgeon preference)
Who’s A Candidate? / Motivation Wants to be less dependent on glasses Understands the limitations of the Array® visual system Willing to accept several months to adapt to their new visual system
Who’s Not A Candidate? Significant dry eyes Corneal scarring Mild to moderate myopia Pupil size < 2.5 mm Monofocal implant in first eye Uncorrected post-op astigmatism > 0.5 D Unstable capsular support Someone who demands perfect vision
ReZoom Multifocal IOL (AMO) Refractive lens 2 nd generation acrylic IOL Delivers good near, distance and intermediate vision
Is The ReZoom Perfect? The most common concerns –Distance blur –Monocular diplopia –Object glow –Ghosting –Halos at night These are the biggest post-op challenges
Acrysof ReStor IOL (Alcon) Diffractive technology Silicone material Uses “apodization” to soften blur and sharpen vision Provides excellent VA at near, distance and intermediate ranges
Strengths of the AcrySof ® ReSTOR ® IOL High quality uncorrected near and distance vision with 20/40 or better intermediate vision without movement of the IOL 80% Overall Spectacle Freedom Nearly 94% of patients would have the lens again
Aspheric Multifocal IOL Technology
Do We currently have any aspheric multifocal IOLs? Tecnis multifocal (AMO) Sofport AO (Bausch & Lomb)
Explain the WOW! Factor (or lack thereof) Haloes and glaare at night are common- these diminish with time Longer adaptation period – may take weeks or months for pxs to accept their “new” visual system Near vision may be fuzzy to myopes May need reading specs for prolonged nearpoint work
Accomodative IOL Crystalens- eyeonics Silicone IOL with hinged optics IOL moves forward or back depending on ciliary muscle tone Implanted using phaco technique Capsulorhexis is critical Pre-op biometry crucial
Enter: Accommodating Lens The first accommodating lens technology approved as safe & effective by the Food & Drug Administration –Manufactured by eyeonics A USA company The lens uses the natural focusing ability of the eye to provide a single focal point throughout a full range of vision from far, through intermediate to near seamlessly A New Paradigm In Vision Correction (In contrast with multifocal IOL’s which use a dual simultaneous focus or monovision where one eye is set for distance & one eye for near) eyeonics crystalens
The Ideal Crystalens Patient Baby Boomer –50’s to the mid 60’s –Cataract starting to compromise quality of vision –Active lifestyle –Concerned about their appearance & ‘quality of life’ Do not want to ‘get old’ Spending billions on lifestyle enhancing procedures –Realistic Expectations –Motivated –Asks lots of questions
Crystalens Post-Op Considerations 1% Atropine day of surgery & 1 day PO Otherwise standard post-op regimen Distance vision stable 1 week Near vision begins to 2 weeks No significant glare or halos after 10 days Must follow more often
Crystalens Post-op Post-op: days post-op Keratometry Uncorrected distance and near visual acuity Controlled maximum plus refraction Distance and near visual acuity through distance correction Gradual Plus Build-up to J1 to determine add. Verify refractive findings with cycloplegic refraction
Spectacle Use Survey Bilateral Implanted Subjects Wearing Spectacles n/n (%) I do not wear spectacles33/128 (25.8%) Almost none of the time61/128 (47.7%) 26% to 50% of the time20/128 (15.6%) 51% to 75% of the time 8/128 (6.3%) 76% to 100% of the time 6/128 (4.7%) Night Spectacles n/n (%) No110/128 (84.6%) Yes 20/130 (15.4%) 73.5 % }
Is There A WOW Factor?
Cataract Surgery- What’s on the horizon? Adjustable IOL- –Material is fixed w/ laser to –Take to phoropter, refract to plano –“Fix” that w/ longer laser light ICL Clear Lens Extraction Impeller extraction technique Lens filling system