Effect of age at time of cataract surgery on subsequent axial length growth in infant eyes

Purpose: To determine whether removal of the crystalline lens and placement of an intraocular lens (IOL) in human infant eyes retard the growth of the pseudophakic eye. Methods: A unilateral lensectomy with placement of a posterior chamber IOL in the sulcus was performed in 11 infants between 2 and 4 months of age. Ax ial length measurements of both eyes were obtained preoperatively and posto peratively. Results: Patients were followed for a mean of 5.6 years. In 7 patients, the mean axial growth was 0.46 mm less in the pseudophakic eye than in the fel low eye (range 0.15 to 0.70 mm). In 1 patient, there was no interocular axi al length difference and in 3, the pseudophakic eye was longer. When measur ements from the only patient with microphthalmia were excluded, the interoc ular difference in axial growth was highly significant (signed rank test, P = .006). Median visual acuity of the pseudophakic eyes at the last follow- up was 20/60 (range 20/30 to 20/200). The final Visual acuity in the pseudo phakic eyes did not correlate with the degree of interocular axial length d ifference (P > .05). Conclusions: Our study suggests there may be a reduction in axial growth in infantile eyes following cataract extraction and IOL implantation. This ef fect probably reduces the magnitude of the myopic shift in these eyes. (C) 1999 ASCRS and ESCRS.