A recent case report found that femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery may be beneficial for patients with zonulopathy.
In this study, a group of researchers examined a 68-year-old man with bilateral, visually significant cataracts. During the preoperative examination, a slit-lamp bio-microscopy was performed in which the zonules appeared healthy; however, a perioperative circle scan performed with the LenSx revealed that the anterior capsule was not parallel with the posterior capsule, indicating zonular weakness or dialysis.
“This case report demonstrated the advantages of using FLACS for cataract operations in a patient with zonulopathy,” write the researchers. “The benefit of having circle and line scan images allowed surgeons to identify the area of zonular dialysis that could not be identified preoperatively.”
The researchers also emphasized the benefits of FLACS during continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis (CCC) and lens fragmentation, particularly for patients with zonulopathy.
“FLACS can create CCC and lens fragmentation with minimal stress to the zonule,” they write.
Full findings are published in the April 2019 issues of the International Medical Case Reports Journal.