Scleral fixation of secondary foldable multifocal intraocular lens implants in children and young adults

To assess the feasibility of transscleral fixation of a foldable, multifocal intraocular lens (IOL) as an alternative form of optical correction to monofocal IOL implantation in aphakic children and young adults intolerant of contact lenses in the absence of sufficient capsular support.

Prospective, nonrandomized, comparative trial.

Twenty-six eyes of 26 unilateral aphakic patients in the age group 6 to 29 years (mean, 13.2 years) at two university institutions with more than 6 months of follow-up.

Anterior vitrectomy and secondary scleral-fixated foldable IOL implantation were performed in all cases. In 12 patients, a zonal-progressive optic multifocal IOL (Array SA40-N; Allergan, Irvine, CA) was implanted, whereas 14 patients received a monofocal IOL (SI40NB; Allergan). The follow-up ranged from 6 to 20 months (mean, 13.4 months).

Preoperative patient demographics, mean postoperative spherical equivalent, astigmatism, and uncorrected and best-corrected distance visual acuity (BCDVA) were similar in the two groups. After surgery, BCDVA within one Snellen line of the preoperative BCDVA was achieved by 83% of the multifocal group and by 85% of the monofocal group. Patients with a multifocal IOL achieved a significantly better uncorrected near visual acuity than patients with monofocal IOL (019 versus 0.34; P = 0.02). With distance correction only, mean near visual acuity was 0.25 versus 0.44 (P = 0.01). Best-corrected near visual acuity was approximately 0.18 for both groups (P = 0.77), with +1.32 diopters (D) for the multifocal group and +2.54 D for the monofocal group (P = 0.001). Spectacle dependency differed significantly between the two groups, with 10 patients (71%) of the monofocal group commonly requiring an additional plus add for near tasks compared with two patients (16%) in the multifocal group (P = 0.001). The Lang test showed stereopsis to be superior in the multifocal group (P = 0.04). Complications encountered were: pressure increase in three eyes (11.5%), which was permanent in one case (3.8%); marked postoperative anterior chamber reaction in four eyes (15.4%); IOL decentration in five eyes (19.2%), one (3.8%) requiring surgical reintervention; and suture erosion through the conjunctiva in two eyes (7.4%). There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups.

Secondary scleral-fixated multifocal IOL implantation was as successful as monofocal IOL implantation in achieving BCDVA comparable with preoperative BCDVA. Moreover, stereopsis, uncorrected and distance-corrected near visual acuities were better in the multifocal patients than in the monofocal eyes. Multifocal IOL seems a viable alternative to monofocal scleral fixation in children and young patients with contact lens-intolerant aphakia.