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Deferral of first review after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery until 2 weeks: randomized controlled
Ayman Saeed1, Mark Guerin, Irfan Khan
1Waterford Regional Hospital, Waterford, Ireland. aymansaeed2003@yahoo.com
Purpose:
To investigate the safety of deferring the ophthalmic review after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery until 2 weeks after the procedure.
Setting:
Waterford Regional Hospital, Waterford, Ireland.
Methods:
After uneventful cataract surgery, 233 patients were randomized to have ophthalmic review 2 hours after the procedure and 2 weeks postoperatively (Group 1) or to forego any ophthalmic review before the 2-week postoperative visit in the outpatient department (Group 2).
Results:
Of the 115 patients randomized to Group 1, 25 (21.7%) had intraocular pressure (IOP) spikes of 30 mm Hg or greater and 2 (1.7%) had a corneal abrasion in the immediate postoperative period. Group 1 and Group 2 were statistically similar in terms of problems encountered in the first 2 postoperative weeks and anterior segment findings and visual acuity at the 2-week postoperative visit.
Conclusions:
The results of this randomized controlled study indicate that the first ophthalmic review after uneventful cataract surgery can be safely deferred until 2 weeks postoperatively in patients in whom a transient IOP spike would not be deemed clinically deleterious. Such a policy will enhance the efficiency of day-surgery units.