Postoperative Care Time After Implantation of Light Adjustable Versus Monofocal Intraocular Lens

To quantify postoperative clinical time and workload required for bilateral Light Adjustable Lens (RxSight) (LAL) implantation compared with bilateral monofocal intraocular lenses (IOLs).

In this retrospective comparative study, records of 60 patients who underwent bilateral cataract surgery by a single surgeon at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute were reviewed (30 LALs, 30 monofocal IOLs). Total postoperative clinical time, number of visits, mean visit duration, and visual outcomes were analyzed over a 90-day period. LAL-specific outcomes included the number of light treatments and uncorrected visual acuity stratified by ocular dominance.

The LAL group required significantly greater total clinic time (14:23 ± 4:36 vs 8:14 ± 2:12 hours; P < .0001), more visits (9 ± 1.37 vs 6 ± 0.48; P < .0001), and longer average visit duration (2:18 ± 0:55 vs 1:35 ± 0:54 minutes; P < .0001) compared with the monofocal group. Despite similar corrected distance visual acuity, the LAL group achieved high rates of spectacle independence through customized refractive targeting.

Bilateral LAL implantation substantially increases postoperative visit burden and chair time relative to monofocal IOLs. These findings underscore the importance of preoperative counseling and scheduling considerations when offering customizable LAL technologies.