The Optical Performance of Spherical and Aspheric Intraocular Lenses in Pediatric Eyes: A Comparative Study

PURPOSE: To compare the optical performance of aspheric intraocular lenses (IOLs) designed to correct the corneal spherical aberration versus spherical IOLs in pediatric eyes after cataract surgery. METHODS: In this prospective study, 40 eyes of patients 6 to 16 years old with developmental cataract were randomly assigned to receive a spherical IOL or an aspheric IOL after pediatric cataract surgery. At 3 months postoperatively, the outcomes compared between the two groups were best-corrected visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and wavefront aberrometry. RESULTS: The mean best-corrected visual acuity was 0.32 ± 0.19 logMAR in the spherical IOL group and 0.28 ± 0.16 logMAR in the aspheric IOL group (P = .179). The aspheric IOL group showed better contrast sensitivity at 1.5, 3, and 6 cycles per degree than the spherical IOL group (P < .05). Total ocular aberrations, higher-order aberrations, and spherical aberrations were significantly lower in the aspheric IOL group (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that aspheric IOLs compensate for the spherical aberration of pediatric eyes. In comparison to spherical IOLs, eyes with aspheric IOLs had decreased ocular aberrations, particularly spherical aberration, which contributed to better contrast sensitivity in these eyes. Further studies are required to evaluate the role of aspheric IOLs in children.