The Importance Of Maintaining A Lower, More Physiological IOP During Cataract Surgery

KEY TAKE-AWAYS

• Cataract surgery performed with high irrigation pressures result in intraoperative IOPs that are typically many times higher than the physiological IOP.
• High levels of irrigation pressure have historically been necessary because of technology limitations with phacoemulsification systems. These high pressures were required to maintain adequate chamber stability at efficient parameters of aspiration flow and vacuum.
• Higher levels of IOP during cataract surgery may have undesirable clinical ramifications, such as greater post-operative anterior segment inflammation, more corneal edema and disruption of the anterior vitreous face.
• Higher IOP settings during phacoemulsification reduce the retinal blood flow, cause subclinical changes in the retina and may pose a risk of causing transient ocular ischemia.
• Patients with higher pre-operative IOP, larger anterior chamber depth and axial length may experience greater levels of discomfort with a higher irrigation pressures during cataract surgery.
• Newer technologies available with Centurion® ACTIVE SENTRY® Vision System now enable a very stable anterior chamber at more efficient vacuum levels and a lower, more physiological IOP.