Effect of micro-coaxial phacoemulsification and standard phacoemulsification on corneal endothelial cell

ObJective To compare the effect of micro-coaxial phacoemulsification and standard-incision phacoemulsification on corneal endothelial cell.Methods Patients with age-related cataract were randomly divided into two groups.Standard-incision (3.0mm) group (55 patients,78 eyes) underwent phacoemulsification through 3.0mm incisions,and micro-coaxial (2.2mm) group (51 patients,72 eyes) underwent phacoemulsification through 2.2mm incisions.The corneal endothelial cell count,percentage of hexagonal cells and central corneal thickness were observed at 1 week,1 month and 6 months after operation.Results The corneal endothelial cell count of patients in both groups was lost over time.All the corneal endothelial cell count of patients after surgery were less than the preoperative,and there were statistical differences (all P ＜0.05).There were statistical differences in endothelial cell counting loss rate between two groups at 1 week,1 month and 6 months after operation (all P ＜0.05),and the endothelial cell counting loss rate of micro-coaxial group was always less than the standard-incision group.The percentage of hexagonal cells in both group were decreased at 1 week after operation,and had gradually regeneration at 1 month and 6 months after operation,but still less than pre-operation,and there were statistical differences (all P ＜0.05).There were statistical differences in percentage of hexagonal cells between two groups at 1 week,1 month and 6 months after operation (all P ＜0.05).There were no statistical differences in central corneal thickness between pre-operation and post-operation in neither two groups.There were no statistical differences in central corneal thickness between two groups at 1 week,1 month and 6 months after operation (all P＞0.05).Conclusions The micro-coaxial phacoemulsification has less impact on corneal endothelial cell and higher corneal security than the standard-incision phacoemulsification. Key words: Microincision;  Phacoemulsification;  Corneal endothelial cell