Restructuration kinetics of amphiphilic intraocular lenses during aging

Photooxidation and hydrolysis are the two primary aging factors of intraocular lenses. Opacifications, dislocations, glistening and yellowing of the implanted acrylic lenses, which are due to chain scissions and depolymerization, are the consequences of aging from the clinical perspective. The purpose of this study was to examine the consequence of the aging of intraocular lenses on chemical and surface properties. Acrylic lenses made of poly acrylic-co-polystyrene polymer were artificially aged by photooxidation and hydrolysis from 2 to 20 years. Degradation products were observed by Reverse-phase High-Performance Liquid Chromatography RP-HPLC and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The surface, which was analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and fibronectin adhesion kinetics, was chosen as an indicator of intraocular biocompatibility. Low-molecular-weight degradation products (LMWP) result from chain scission under both hydrolysis and photooxidation. The osmotic effects of water enable degradation products to migrate through the polymer. A portion of the degradation products exudate in the surrounding center, whereas a portion link with lateral chains of the polymer. At the same time, the surface roughness evolves to externalize the most hydrophilic chains. As a result, the fibronectin adhesion level decrease with time, which indicates the existence of a biocompatible kinetic for implanted intraocular lenses.