Retrospective Cohort Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Exp Med. Jun 20, 2024; 14(2): 95016
Published online Jun 20, 2024. doi: 10.5493/wjem.v14.i2.95016
Determination of the time of refractive stability after uneventful phacoemulsification in Indian eyes
Ashok Kumar Nanda, Bijnya Birajita Panda, Asish Swain, Logesh Balakrishnan
Ashok Kumar Nanda, Department of Ophthalmology, Kar Vision Eye Hospital, Bhubaneswar 751013, Odisha, India
Bijnya Birajita Panda, Department of Ophthalmology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar 751019, Odisha, India
Asish Swain, Department of Optometry, Kar Vision Eye Hospital, Bhubaneswar 751013, Odisha, India
Logesh Balakrishnan, Department of Statistics, Apollo Hospitals, Chennai 823104, India
Author contributions: Nanda AK contributed to the formulation of the study and data collection; Panda BB contributed to data analysis and interpretation, manuscript preparation and editing; Swain A contributed to data collection; Balakrishnan L contributed to data statistical analysis.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by Ethics Committee of Kar Vision Eye Hospital, No. 23-06.
Informed consent statement: Patients were not required to give informed consent to the study because the study was retrospective, and analysis used anonymous clinical data that were obtained after each patient agreed to treatment by written consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: Data from patients included in the study in Excel table format can be provided upon request to the corresponding author at bigyan_panda@yahoo.co.in.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement—checklist of items.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bijnya Birajita Panda, MBBS, MS, Assistant Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Sijua, Bhubaneswar 751019, Odisha, India. bigyan_panda@yahoo.co.in
Received: March 30, 2024
Revised: May 5, 2024
Accepted: May 30, 2024
Published online: June 20, 2024
Processing time: 81 Days and 7.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Knowledge about refractive stabilization and the accuracy of postoperative refractive error measurements are crucial for improved patient outcomes after phacoemulsification. Existing guidelines typically recommend waiting 4-6 wk before prescribing corrective lenses. Our research focused on identifying factors that influence refractive errors in the early stages of post-cataract surgery, thus contributing to the existing literature on this topic.

AIM

To investigate the time required for refraction stability after uneventful phacoemulsification surgery.

METHODS

We compared the variation and statistical significance of the difference in spherical, cylindrical components, and the spherical equivalent between the 1- and 6-wk follow-up period in a group of 257 eyes that underwent uneventful phacoemulsification with foldable intraocular lens implantation, all performed by a single experienced surgeon. The Wilcoxon-Signed Rank Test was utilized to assess the magnitude of the change and determine its statistical significance. The refractive stability was defined as the point at which the change in spherical equivalent was within ± 0.5 dioptres for two consecutive visits.

RESULTS

The average age of the patients was 64.9 ± 8.9 yr. The differences observed in both the visits in spherical power (0.1 ± 0.2), cylinder power (0.3 ± 0.4), and spherical equivalent (0.2 ± 0.2) were minimal and not statistically significant. The majority of eyes (93.4%) achieved refractive stability within 6 wk after the surgery. The cylindrical power differed between age groups at the 6th wk post-operative and the difference was statistically significant (P value 0.013). There were no significant differences in refractive stability when considering sex and axial length.

CONCLUSION

Phacoemulsification with foldable intraocular lens implantation results in no significant changes in refraction for the majority of cases during the 6-wk follow-up period. Therefore, a spectacle prescription can be given at the completion of 1 wk.

Keywords: Cataract surgery; Phacoemulsification; Refraction stability; Visual acuity; Spherical equivalent

Core Tip: Achieving refractive stability in Indian eyes after uneventful phacoemulsification involves meticulous preoperative planning, including accurate biometry and corneal assessment, tailored intraocular lens selection, addressing astigmatism, patient education, and diligent postoperative follow-up. These strategies, combined with adapting to new technologies and personalized care, can significantly improve the satisfaction and visual outcomes for patients. Spectacles can be prescribed after 1 wk of completion. This study is the inaugural research focused on Indian eyes, offering an extensive analysis of the factors affecting the time needed to achieve stable vision across different patient groups.