Hydrophilic acrylic intraocular lens exchange: Five-year experience

PURPOSE: To evaluate clinical outcomes of opacified SC60B-OUV intraocular lens (IOL) (MDR, Inc.) and clear SC60B-OUV IOL exchange. SETTING: Department of Ophthalmology, Queen's Hospital, Burton-on-Trent, United Kingdom. METHODS: In a prospective audit, 149 patients with 152 SC60B-OUV hydrophilic acrylic IOLs were monitored over 5 years. Perioperative complications were evaluated. The best spectacle-corrected visual acuity, subjective quality of vision, and VF-14 scores were compared preoperatively and postoperatively. RESULTS: Ninety-eight IOLs developed opacification; 52 IOLs were exchanged between February 1999 and October 2004. The lens exchange procedure was uneventful in 39 eyes (75%). Perioperative complications included zonular dehiscence and posterior capsule rupture in 12 eyes (23.1%), total capsule-IOL extraction in 4 eyes (7.7%), iridodialysis in 3 eyes (5.8%), hyphema in 2 eyes (3.8%), and retained haptics in 5 eyes (9.6%). The mean logMAR visual acuity and mean VF-14 scores improved significantly after IOL exchange (P<.01). Forty-seven patients (90.4%) reported improvement in the subjective quality of vision after IOL exchange. However, after the exchange, visual acuity worsened in 5 patients (9.6%) and subjective quality of vision worsened in 3 patients (5.8%); the VF-14 scores decreased in 5 (14.7%) of the 34 patients tested. CONCLUSIONS: Visual function and quality of life were better after IOL exchange. However, poor outcomes in some patients mandate an extensive informed consent procedure for clear IOL exchange.