Clinical outcomes using standard phacoemulsification and femtosecond laser-assisted surgery with toric intraocular lenses

Abstract

Purpose: To compare the 1-month and 1-year results of toric intraocular lens (IOL) implantation with standard (manual) phacoemulsification vs femtosecond laser-assisted surgery. Patients and methods: Refractive data, visual acuity data, and ocular aberration measured with a wavefront aberrometer were collected for two groups of patients from one site. The first group had standard phacoemulsification, while the second group had femtosecond laser-assisted surgery, and both groups were implanted with toric IOLs, either monofocal or multifocal. Differences in visual acuity, refractive outcomes, and higher order aberrations – total, corneal, and internal – were evaluated at 1 month and 1 year postoperatively. Results: Toric IOLs were implanted in 62 eyes using standard phacoemulsification and 53 eyes using femtosecond laser-assisted surgery. Uncorrected visual acuity and best-spectacle-corrected visual acuity at 1 month and 1 year were not statistically significantly different between the groups (P.0.05) nor was the mean cylinder or mean spherical equivalent refraction (P.0.12). Total ocular higher order aberrations were significantly different between the groups (P,0.05), but absolute differences appeared to be the same. Internal vertical coma was significantly lower in the femto group at 1 year (P=0.03). Differences in aberrations did not correlate with corrected or uncorrected visual acuity. Conclusion: Patients who underwent uncomplicated lens surgery with toric IOLs in both the groups had comparable refractive outcomes in terms of visual acuity and residual refraction at 1 year. The femto group had significantly lower internal vertical coma at 1 year.