Effect of optic material and haptic design on anterior capsule opacification and capsulorrhexis contraction

To examine the influence of optic material (silicone and hydrophobic acrylic) and haptic design (one-piece and three-piece open loop) of sharp optic edge intraocular lenses (IOL) on anterior capsule opacification (ACO) and capsulorrhexis contraction.

Randomized, controlled, double-blind clinical trial with intraindividual comparison.

This study was performed at the Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Vienna, Austria, and comprised 210 eyes of 105 patients with bilateral age-related cataract. In group 1 (n = 53 patients), a three-piece acrylic IOL was compared with a three-piece silicone IOL. In group 2 (n = 52 patients), the three-piece acrylic IOL was compared with the one-piece acrylic IOL. One year after the operation, standardized digital slit-lamp images of ACO were taken; 1 week and 1 year after the operation, digital retroillumination images were taken to assess capsulorrhexis size. The intensity of ACO was graded objectively (score, 0% to 100%), and the capsulorrhexis area (square millimeters) was determined objectively.

One year after surgery, the mean ACO score was 21% for the acrylic and 20% for the silicone IOL (P = .4) in group 1 and 18% for both the three-piece and one-piece acrylic IOLs (P = .87) in group 2. Concerning the amount of capsulorrhexis contraction, there was no significant difference between the IOL types that were evaluated in this study (after Bonferroni-Holm correction, P > .05).

In the hydrophobic sharp optic edge IOLs that were examined, neither the optic material nor the haptic design had an influence on the amount of ACO or capsulorrhexis contraction.