TECHNIQUE

Pars plicata posterior continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis

Abhay R. Vasavada, MS, FRCS, Sajani K. Shah, DO, MS, Mamidipudi R. Praveen, DOMS, Viraj A. Vasavada, MS, Rupal H. Trivedi, MD, MSCR, Shrihari J. Karve, DOMS, DNB

We describe a technique of pars plicata manual posterior capsulorhexis performed after implan- tation of an intraocular (IOL) in pediatric surgery. The technique can be used to create a posterior capsulectomy of a desirable size in a controlled manner to avoid destabilization of the IOL. It can be applied selectively in cases of pediatric . Financial Disclosure: No author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned. J Cataract Refract Surg 2011; 37:221–223 Q 2011 ASCRS and ESCRS Online Video

Management of the posterior capsule is a significant and anterior . The advantage is that the IOL factor in the outcome of pediatric cataract surgery. can be safely fixated in the desired plane (in the bag). Posterior capsule opacification (PCO) is rapid and in- The common practice is to perform the posterior evitable in very young children if an intact posterior capsulectomy and anterior vitrectomy before IOL capsule remains after cataract surgery. The younger implantation if the limbal approach has been used. the child, the more acute the problem because the However, in soft vitrectomized infant or micro- onset of PCO is faster and the amblyogenic effect phthalmic eyes, it is relatively difficult to implant greater. A primary posterior capsulectomy (with or adult-sized IOLs. It is also difficult to dial the trailing without anterior vitrectomy) is considered a routine haptic inside the capsular bag with the available surgical step in managing pediatric cataract, especially adult-sized IOLs, and the leading haptic may slip in young children. However, the question arises of into the vitreous. To avoid these problems, some sur- how and when to perform the posterior capsulectomy geons implant the IOL in the bag and perform either and vitrectomy during pediatric cataract surgery. retropseudophakic posterior capsulectomy and vitrec- Some surgeons advocate removing the posterior cap- tomy1 or a pars plicata posterior capsulectomy and sule and anterior vitreous before vitrectomy.2,3 We believe that a manual posterior con- (IOL) implantation. Others prefer to have the IOL in tinuous curvilinear capsulorhexis (PCCC) creates an place before performing the posterior capsulectomy opening with a strong margin that resists peripheral tears and holds the vitreous in place. It allows safe an- terior vitrectomy and prevents uncontrolled widening Submitted: September 3, 2009. of the opening. We describe a technique of manual Final revision submitted: July 22, 2010. PCCC performed through the pars plicata after IOL Accepted: August 11, 2010. implantation in the capsular bag. From the Iladevi Cataract & IOL Research Centre (A.R. Vasavada, Shah, Praveen, V.A. Vasavada, Karve), Raghudeep Clinic, SURGICAL TECHNIQUE Ahmedabad, India; and the Storm Eye Institute (Trivedi), Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA. A temporal conjunctival peritomy with minimal cau- terization is performed initially. Two limbal paracent- Supported in part by National Institutes of Health grant EY-14793 esis incisions of 1.0 mm are then made 180 degrees (R.H.T.) and an unrestricted grant to MUSC-SEI from Research apart in the clear . A 3.0 mm temporal single- to Prevent Blindness, Inc., New York, New York, USA. plane clear corneal incision with a 1.5 mm to 2.0 mm Corresponding author: Abhay R. Vasavada, MS, FRCS, Iladevi internal entry is created. An anterior capsulorhexis is Cataract & IOL Research Centre, Raghudeep Eye Clinic, Gurukul initiated by making a nick with a 26-gauge cystotome Road, Memnagar, Ahmedabad 380052, India. E-mail: icirc@ and completed by repeatedly grasping the flap using abhayvasavada.com. a Utrata forceps. Bimanual irrigation/aspiration is

Q 2011 ASCRS and ESCRS 0886-3350/$ - see front matter 221 Published by Elsevier Inc. doi:10.1016/j.jcrs.2010.11.012 222 TECHNIQUE: PARS PLICATA PCCC

Figure 1. After IOL implantation, an MVR blade is advanced through the pars plicata to initiate a puncture in the center of the posterior capsule. A coaxial capsulorhexis forceps is introduced, and a flap is generated to fashion and complete the posterior apsulorhexis. then performed to remove the cortex. A single-piece initially positioned with the port facing upward to per- hydrophobic acrylic IOL is implanted in the bag with form anterior vitrectomy; gradually, the vitrectome an injector (Figure 1, top left). All the incisions are su- port is also turned to face the optic nerve, ensuring tured with 10-0 nylon, and the residual ophthalmic thorough vitreous removal. viscosurgical device (OVD) is left in the anterior cham- ber. Later, a microvitreoretinal (MVR) blade is used to create a pars plicata stab wound at a direction slightly anterior to the center of the eye (Figure 1, top middle). The pars plicata entry is made 1.0 to 1.5 mm behind the limbus, and the blade is advanced until the tip is visible in the pupillary area. An initial puncture is made in the center of the posterior capsule using the same MVR blade (Figure 1, top right). A coaxial capsu- lorhexis forceps is introduced and a flap generated from the initial puncture. The edge of the flap is grasped and then regrasped approximately every 2 clock hours, and the tear is directed toward the center and downward, fashioning the PCCC in a clock- wise manner (Figure 1, bottom row). The aim is to create a PCCC smaller than the anterior capsulorhexis, approximately 3.0 to 4.0 mm (Figure 2, top left). A lim- ited central automated anterior vitrectomy is per- formed (Figure 2, top right). The vitreous is managed by a 2-port vitrectomy. The vitrectome is passed through the pars plicata, and irrigation is introduced through the paracentesis (to the left of the main Figure 2. A limited central automated anterior vitrectomy per- incision) into the anterior chamber. The vitrectome is formed through the pars plicata and postoperative IOL in the bag.

J CATARACT REFRACT SURG - VOL 37, FEBRUARY 2011 TECHNIQUE: PARS PLICATA PCCC 223

The sclerostomy wound is closed with 10-0 nylon. manner with little risk. Moreover, IOL centration The residual OVD is removed at the end of the surgery and stability are not disturbed during the posterior with bimanual limbal vitrectomy. All the incisions are capsulectomy. The major advantage of pars plicata sutured with 10-0 nylon (Figure 2, bottom)(Video, PCCC with vitrectomy is that it is possible to achieve available at http://jcrsjournal.org). At the end of the in-the-bag fixation of the IOL more consistently. Fur- surgery, carbachol 0.01% is injected intracamerally to thermore, a posterior capsule opening of the desired constrict the pupil. The anterior chamber is reformed size is achieved since the IOL is in place. The limitation with balanced salt solution, and intracameral moxi- of the technique is that it has a slightly higher learning floxacin (1 mg/0.1 mL) is injected at the end of the curve and is skill dependent. Moreover, the technique procedure. does not work in eyes with a large posterior capsule plaque. However, it is a novel approach to creating DISCUSSION a posterior capsulectomy of a desirable size in a con- trolled manner without destabilizing the IOL and At present, only adult-sized IOLs are available, and can be applied in select cases. To validate the safety the currently available IOLs are slightly oversized of the technique, a study evaluating the postoperative and may not fit into small microphthalmic infant outcomes is underway. eyes, leading to complications in the long term. It is mandatory to perform a small PCCC in small eyes to REFERENCES avoid vitreous prolapse and destabilization of the IOL. Various options for posterior capsulectomy in 1. Mackool RJ, Chhatiawala H. Pediatric cataract surgery and intra- children are available. A posterior capsule opening ocular lens implantation: a new technique for preventing or excis- ing postoperative secondary membranes. J Cataract Refract can be created manually (capsulorhexis) or with Surg 1991; 17:62–66 a vitrector (vitrectorhexis). Some surgeons advocate 2. Buckley EG, Klombers LA, Seaber JH, Scalise-Gordy A, Minzter R. implanting an IOL and then performing a limbal- Management of the posterior capsule during pediatric intraocular approach retropseudophakic manual PCCC or vitrec- lens implantation. Am J Ophthalmol 1993; 115:722–728 tomy. The drawbacks of this approach are that it is dif- 3. Alexandrakis G, Peterseim MM, Wilson ME. Clinical outcomes of pars plana with anterior vitrectomy in pediatric cata- ficult to go behind the IOL and it may endanger the ract surgery. J AAPOS 2002; 6:163–167 IOL positioning and stability. The size of the opening 4. Wilson ME Jr. Anterior lens capsule management in pediatric cat- cannot always be controlled. In addition, the margin aract surgery. Trans Am Ophthalmol Soc 2004; 102:391–422. of the posterior capsule opening is not regular and Available at: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi? Z Z strong. Manual anterior capsulorhexis produces the artid 1280111&blobtype pdf. Accessed August 11, 2010 5. Trivedi RH, Wilson ME Jr, Bartholomew LR. Extensibility and most extensible capsulotomy with a highly regular scanning electron microscopy evaluation of 5 pediatric anterior 4,5 and stable edge. Similar observations may be true capsulotomy techniques in a porcine model. J Cataract Refract for the posterior capsule. Manual PCCC also facilitates Surg 2006; 32:1206–1213 anterior vitrectomy because the strong margins pre- vent peripheral extension. Although performing man- ual posterior capsulorhexis is technically challenging, it remains a gold standard because it offers greater First author: Abhay R. Vasavada, MS, FRCS resistance to capsule tearing and also yields a smooth round edge. Iladevi Cataract & IOL Research Centre We performed manual PCCC through the pars pli- and Raghudeep Eye Clinic, cata after IOL implantation. This approach allows Ahmedabad, India the surgeon to create a capsulectomy in a controlled

J CATARACT REFRACT SURG - VOL 37, FEBRUARY 2011