Intraocular lens power calculation for lens exchange.

PURPOSE: To examine patients who had intraocular lens (IOL) exchange for large postoperative refractive errors and determine the factors that contributed to the error in IOL power calculation.

SETTING

Thirteen affiliated hospitals in Japan.

METHODS

This study comprised 34 cases that required IOL exchange because of large refractive errors after primary lens implantation. Patients with intraoperative complications were excluded from the study. The potential contribution of axial length, corneal refractive power, IOL manufacturer, and IOL fixation to errors in the predicted power was examined retrospectively. Axial length was calculated by the SRK/T and Holladay formulas using refraction after primary IOL implantation.

RESULTS

There was no statistical difference between the corneal refractive power before and after cataract surgery. The axial lengths calculated using the SRK/T and Holladay formulas were longer than the ultrasonic axial lengths in 24 and 23 cases, respectively. Using IOLs from the same manufacturer for both primary implantation and exchange reduced the error in predicted refraction.

CONCLUSION

Axial length and IOL manufacturer were important factors in predicting refraction power in eyes requiring IOL exchange.