Better visual acuity with FLACS

Patients treated with femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) had significantly better uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) three hours after surgery than those treated with conventional phaco cataract surgery, Karl Stonecipher MD told the 2017 ASCRS•ASOA Symposium & Congress in Los Angeles, USA. Mean UCVA for 1,015 FLACS patients was 20/32 compared with 20/50 for 761 conventional phaco patients. “At three months they were comparable but my patients want to see instantly,” said Dr Stonecipher, of the University of North Carolina. The FLACS group also required significantly less ultrasound energy and time, he noted.

My patients want to see instantly

Patients with LOCS Grade II cataracts treated as part of the USFREE trial showed similar results, said Alfredo Tranjan Neto MD of Sao Paulo, Brazil. In a randomized interventional study 52 FLACS eyes achieved a mean best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 0.08 ±0.14 logMAR, or nearly 20/20, compared with 0.20 ±0.23, or about 20/32, for 52 conventional phaco eyes (P=0.00016). Dr Neto also reported significantly higher endothelial cell density in the FLACS group 30 days after surgery, with a mean 2,401.58 ±463.03 compared with 2,100.04 ±565.74 in the conventional phaco group (P=0.0051). At zero, phaco energy in the FLACS group was also significantly lower, while the volume of balanced salt solution used and surgical time were similar between the two groups. FLACS is potentially a safer procedure than conventional phaco cataract surgery and offers faster recovery time in patients with Grade II nuclei, Dr Neto concluded.