Retropupillary Iris-Clipped Artisan-Verysise Intraocular Lens Implant To Correct Aphakia Or Subluxed Natural Lenses In Children

Julia Escardo-Paton

PURPOSE: To report our experience with retropupillary iris-clipped Artisan-Verysise intraocular lens implants in children to correct aphakia or when used combined with lensectomy for lens subluxation.

METHOD: This is a retrospective case series of paediatric cases in which the Artisan-Verysise IOL was implanted by a single surgeon. Data collected included indication for surgery, age, pre-operative and post-operative visual acuities, length of follow-up, and complications.

RESULTS: 11 eyes from 7 patients were identified. The patients ranged in age from 4 to 12 years (average 5.5). 3 eyes had secondary Artisan-Verysise IOL's to correct aphakia from previously extracted congenital cataracts, while 8 eyes had primary Artisan-Verysise IOL implantation in combination with lensectomy for subluxed natural lenses. Preoperatively, the visual acuities ranged from 6/15 to CF, while postoperatively, they ranged from 6/9 to CF. All except two eyes had improvement in their visual acuities after surgery and 8/11 (73%) improved by more than 2 snellen acuitiy lines. Overall, the average improvement was of 3.5 lines. No eyes lost vision. The average length of follow-up was 8.5 months (range 0-27 months). 3/11 eyes (17%) experienced complications. One had prolonged postoperative hypotony with choroidal detachments and subsequent retinal detachment, while another had a single haptic dislocation. In the third case, accidental blunt trauma resulted in posterior dislocation of the Artisan-Verysise IOL.

CONCLUSION: The retropupillary iris-clipped Artisan-Verysise IOL provides effective visual rehabilitation to children lacking capsular support for a conventional posterior chamber intraocular lens implant and those who cannot tolerate contact lenses to correct aphakia.