Partial lens refilling to preserve lens accommodation after cataract surgery

Mandy Patzlaff-Günther; Björn Spoida; Alina Rahtz; Maximilian Franke; Michael Fromm; Felix Scheling; Holger Lubatschowski; Jan Hahn; Sonja Johannsmeier; Tammo Ripken

doi:10.1117/12.3005346

12 March 2024 Partial lens refilling to preserve lens accommodation after cataract surgery

Mandy Patzlaff-Günther, Björn Spoida, Alina Rahtz, Maximilian Franke, Michael Fromm, Felix Scheling, Holger Lubatschowski, Jan Hahn, Sonja Johannsmeier, Tammo Ripken

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 12824, Ophthalmic Technologies XXXIV; 1282409 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3005346
Event: SPIE BiOS, 2024, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

The accommodation of the crystalline lens allows for sharp vision in the close and distant range. Conditions such as cataracts can make it necessary to replace the natural tissue with an artificial intraocular lens (IOL), which lacks the ability to accommodate. The alternatives that are currently under investigation include accommodating IOLs or refilling the lens bag with hydrogels. Here, we investigate the possibility to remove and refill only the central part (nucleus) of a cataract lens, thereby preserving its ability to accommodate. This approach avoids damage to the lens cortex to prevent stiffening of the capsular bag—a significant drawback of complete lens refilling. The nucleus of the lenses of porcine eyes was fragmented via fs-laser treatment and removed by phacoemulsification. The lens’s mechanical properties, ray tracing properties and curvature were investigated with an in-house developed measurement setup, including a lens stretching device for simulation of accommodation. This yielded quantifiable data on the transparency, accommodation capabilities and focus shift of treated versus untreated lenses. While native transparency could not yet be achieved, refilled eyes exhibited the same focal shift as non-refilled, indicating functional accommodation. Measurements of the curvature revealed stronger flattening of refilled eyes. Apart from the study of partial lens refill, the stretcher device and respective protocols presented here possess great potential in IOL development, presbyopia research or characterization of model lenses.

Conference Presentation

(2024) Published by SPIE. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Citation Download Citation

Mandy Patzlaff-Günther, Björn Spoida, Alina Rahtz, Maximilian Franke, Michael Fromm, Felix Scheling, Holger Lubatschowski, Jan Hahn, Sonja Johannsmeier, and Tammo Ripken "Partial lens refilling to preserve lens accommodation after cataract surgery", Proc. SPIE 12824, Ophthalmic Technologies XXXIV, 1282409 (12 March 2024); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3005346

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available