Infantile cataract: comparison of two surgical approaches.

Objective: To compare the results of 2 cataract extraction techniques with primary intraocular lens (IOL) implantation in children.

Design: Retrospective comparative case series study.

Methods: This study included children with congenital or developmental cataract. In all cases, anterior capsulorhexis, lens aspiration, posterior continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis, and primary IOL implantation were performed. We compared 2 surgical approaches. In the first approach, after IOL implantation in the bag, posterior optic capture (OC) was performed without anterior vitrectomy (OC technique); in the second approach, anterior vitrectomy was performed without OC of the IOL (AV technique). Patient demographic data as well as ethnic origin, child's age at cataract diagnosis, child's age at surgery, axial length, IOL power in diopters, visual acuity, visual axis opacification, and complications were assessed.

Results: One hundred twenty-three eyes were included for surgical approach outcomes comparison; 21 eyes underwent the OC surgical approach and 102 the AV surgical approach. The mean patient age at surgery was 57.3 ± 47.1 months. The mean follow-up was 63.13 months (range 12-202 months). Epithelial lens reproliferation was the major adverse event in our series, affecting 21.1% of patients' eyes; the mean time to epithelial lens reproliferation development was 90 ± 9.70 months. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in best spectacle-corrected visual acuity or epithelial lens reproliferation incidence.

Conclusions: In our case series we did not find any difference between surgical techniques.