Femtosecond laser capsulotomy

TLDR

The study evaluates a femtosecond laser system for creating capsulotomies in cataract surgery. The laser capsulotomy was performed using an OCT‑guided femtosecond system in porcine, cadaver, and 39 human patients in a prospective randomized study. Laser‑created capsulotomies were significantly more precise, accurate, reproducible, and stronger than manual capsulorhexis, with mean diameter deviation of 29 µm versus 337 µm, circularity 6 % versus 20 %, and strength 113–152 mN compared to 65 mN for manual.

Abstract

To evaluate a femtosecond laser system to create the capsulotomy.Porcine and cadaver eye studies were performed at OptiMedica Corp., Santa Clara, California, USA; the human trial was performed at the Centro Laser, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.Experimental and clinical study.Capsulotomies performed by an optical coherence tomography-guided femtosecond laser were evaluated in porcine and human cadaver eyes. Subsequently, the procedure was performed in 39 patients as part of a prospective randomized study of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery. The accuracy of the capsulotomy size, shape, and centration were quantified and capsulotomy strength was assessed in the porcine eyes.Laser-created capsulotomies were significantly more precise in size and shape than manually created capsulorhexes. In the patient eyes, the deviation from the intended diameter of the resected capsule disk was 29 μm ± 26 (SD) for the laser technique and 337 ± 258 μm for the manual technique. The mean deviation from circularity was 6% and 20%, respectively. The center of the laser capsulotomies was within 77 ± 47 μm of the intended position. All capsulotomies were complete, with no radial nicks or tears. The strength of laser capsulotomies (porcine subgroup) decreased with increasing pulse energy: 152 ± 21 mN for 3 μJ, 121 ± 16 mN for 6 μJ, and 113 ± 23 mN for 10 μJ. The strength of the manual capsulorhexes was 65 ± 21 mN.The femtosecond laser produced capsulotomies that were more precise, accurate, reproducible, and stronger than those created with the conventional manual technique.