Correcting preoperative astigmatism using 3.5mm Incision in phacoemulsification

Objective To evaluate surgically induced astigmatism (SIA), postoperative astigmatism and uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) after cataract surgery with 3 .5 mm superior scleral tunnel and temporal clear corneal incision. Methods 89 eyes were recruited for this prospective study. 47 eyes with preoperative With-The-Rule (WTR) astigmatism were assigned to superior scleral tunnel incision (Group A). 42 eyes with preoperative Against-The-Rule (ATR) astigmatism were assigned to temporal clear corneal incision (Group B). All patients had autokeratometry preoperatively (3 day, 1, 3 .6 months, 1 year) . SIA was calculated by Cravy analysis. Results Preoperative astigmatism was 1.17 D in Group A and 1.22 D in Group B.3 days postoperatively, SIA 0.22 D in Group A and 0. 57 D in Group B. Postoperatively astigmatism was 1 .10 D in Group A and 1 .03 D in Group B. UCVA Of 0.5 or better was 85.1% in Group A and 8l.0% in Group B. 1 year postoperatively, SIA was 0.39 D in Group A and 0.26 D in Group B. Postoperative astigmatism was 0.82 D in Group A and 1 .00 D in Group B. Conclusion This study showed small-incision phacoemulsification decreased postoperative astigmatism and produced good UCVA