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Phacoemulsification using the burst mode
Daniel Badoza1, Julio Fernández Mendy, Marcela Ganly
1Instituto de la Visión, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina. dabadoza@fibertel.com.ar
Purpose:
To compare the amount of ultrasound (US) energy required for burst mode and pulse mode during nuclear fragment emulsification.
Setting:
Instituto de la Visión, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Methods:
The ultrasound time (UST) and effective US power (USP) used by 2 surgeons were retrospectively compared. Nuclear fragments were emulsified using the pulse mode in 82 cases (Group 1) and the burst mode in 118 cases (Group 2). The 2 groups were divided according to nuclear hardness: 0 to 2+ (subgroups 1a and 2a) or 3+ to 4+ (subgroups 1b and 2b). The difference in nuclear hardness between Groups 1 and 2 was not statistically significant.
Results:
The mean UST and USP were, respectively, 1.64 minutes +/- 0.98 (SD) at 10.53% +/- 4.46% in subgroup 1a and 0.56 +/- 0.46 minutes at 10.51% +/- 5.80% in subgroup 1b. The respective means were 2.94 +/- 1.36 minutes at 15.14% +/- 4.49% in subgroup 2a and 0.75 +/- 0.52 minutes at 10.04% +/- 3.12% in subgroup 2b. The differences between subgroups were statistically significant except between subgroups 2a and 2b.
Conclusion:
The burst mode increased US efficiency, especially when used for hard cataracts.