[Pupil reconstruction with an artificial iris]

Patients with iris defects suffer from severe visual impairment, especially increased glare sensitivity, and cosmetic disturbances. This can constitute a great psychological strain for patients. In the recent past the treatment consisted of iris print contact lenses, sunglasses and simple iris prostheses. The indications for surgical treatment are colobomas of the iris, aniridia, traumatic iris defects and persistent mydriasis. The aim of this review article is to investigate the surgical approaches, complications, functional and aesthetic outcome after implantation of an individual artificial iris prosthesis made from silicone.

Analysis of the literature on the topic of surgical iris reconstruction with an artificial iris in combination with the own experience in more than 120 patients treated by the author in the last 10 years.

The custom-made flexible silicone iris prosthesis ArtificialIris (HumanOptics, Erlangen, Germany) assessed in this review is an innovative and versatile option for surgical treatment of iris defects. Patients were examined before and after iris reconstruction with respect to feasibility, complications and outcome.

Change of best corrected visual acuity, intraocular pressure, pupillary opening, glare, contrast sensitivity, endothelial cell count, anterior chamber depth, anterior chamber angle and patient satisfaction were assessed. Furthermore, complications and color match to the residual and fellow iris were assessed.

The implantation of an artificial iris is an effective option for the treatment of extensive traumatic iris defects and leads to an individual aesthetically appealing and good functional outcome as well as high patient satisfaction; however, this is an intervention that should not be underestimated because of a flat learning curve and various complications that can occur.