CHRONIC SUBCLINICAL INFLAMMATION IN PHAKIC EYES WITH INTRAOCULAR LENSES TO CORRECT MYOPIA

Purpose: To evaluate whether either of two anterior chamber intraocula r lenses (IOLs) implanted in myopic, phakic eyes induced an inflammato ry response that was measurable with a laser flare-cell meter but that could not be measured by other methods. Setting: Jimenez-Diaz Foundat ion and San Carlos University Hospital, Madrid, Spain. Methods: Thirty eyes with a Worst-Fechner IOL and 30 eyes with a Baikoff ZB5M IOL wer e evaluated using the flare mode of a laser flare-cell meter. Patients in each group were divided into three subgroups of 10 eyes each accor ding to when the postoperative flare measurements were done: 12 months , 18 months, and 24 months. Thirteen phakic eyes with myopia greater t han -6.00 diopters were used as controls. Results: Postoperative flare in the Worst-Fechner group was 27.05 +/- 19 photons per millisecond ( photons/ms) (mean +/- SD) at 12 months, 18.09 +/- 17.38 photons/ms at 18 months, and 31.03 +/- 28.8 photons/ms at 24 months. Postoperative f lare in the Baikoff group was 21.1 +/- 5.9 photons/ms at 12 months, 16 .13 +/- 8.3 photons/ms at 18 months, and 21.05 +/- 23.5 photons/ms at 24 months. Flare in the control group was 4.24 +/- 2.8 photons/ms. Pos toperative flare values were significantly higher in both IOL groups t han in the control group at all follow-ups (Mann-Whitney test, P < .05 ). Postoperative flare values in the Worst-Fechner group were higher t han in the Baikoff group at 12, 18, and 24 months, although the differ ence was not significant (Mann-Whitney test, P > .05). Conclusions: Ou r study shows chronic subclinical inflammation between 1 and 2 years a fter implantation of both IOL types.