[Minimal endothelial cell loss following phacoemulsification and implantation of a posterior chamber lens].

Fifty patients with senile cataract were treated consecutively by phacoemulsification in the posterior chamber or pupillary plane using a bimanual technique followed by implantation of a Kratz posterior chamber lens. Central endothelial cell density was determined both before and after surgery. The average central endothelial cell loss was 4.1 +/- 3.02%. Follow-up examinations of a small number of patients 27 months after phacoemulsification and posterior chamber lens implantation showed no additional lens-induced endothelial cell loss.