Pseudophakia Is Associated With an Increased Risk of Post-Operative Fibrin Formation in Dogs Undergoing Phacoemulsification Compared to Elective Aphakia.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the occurrence and effect of fibrin formation following phacoemulsification in dogs with pseudophakia and elective aphakia.

ANIMAL STUDIED: A total of 193 eyes (116 dogs) undergoing phacoemulsification with or without intraocular lens implantation.

PROCEDURES: Retrospective evaluation of medical records (2016-2020) from a private referral clinic in the United Kingdom. Signalment, pre-operative ophthalmic findings, surgical parameters, postoperative complications, and duration of follow-up were evaluated. All surgeries were performed by one surgeon using one hydrophobic acrylic lens (LOKI; Cristalens). Cross-tabulations and Fisher's exact tests were used to evaluate associations between lens implantation, fibrin formation, and visual outcome at 6 months postoperatively.

RESULTS

Records of 193 eyes from 116 dogs were reviewed. Postoperative fibrin formation was recorded in 31/72 (43%) pseudophakic eyes and 18/121 (15%) aphakic eyes. Pseudophakic eyes were three times more likely to experience fibrin formation compared to aphakic eyes (p < 0.001). Signalment, diabetic status, presence of concurrent ocular or systemic disease, cataract stage, or development of postoperative ocular hypertension were not associated with fibrin formation (p > 0.1). At 6 months postoperatively fibrin formation was significantly associated with vision loss in pseudophakic eyes (p = 0.003), but there was no association between fibrin formation and vision loss in aphakic eyes (p = 0.6). There was no direct association between the presence of an intraocular lens and vision loss (p > 0.4).

CONCLUSION

In this study, pseudophakia was associated with increased occurrence of postoperative fibrin formation. Although pseudophakia was not directly associated with vision loss, fibrin formation in pseudophakic eyes was associated with a poorer visual outcome.