Long-term outcomes for pediatric patients having transscleral fixation of the capsular bag with intraocular lens for ectopia lentis

Purpose To report the long-term outcomes of transscleral fixation of capsular tension rings (CTR) with intraocular lens (IOL) placement in pediatric patients with ectopia lentis. Setting John A. Moran Eye Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Design Retrospective case series. Methods Pediatric patients requiring lens extraction with transscleral capsular bag fixation with a CTR and IOL for ectopia lentis between January 2006 and January 2016 were analyzed. Results Thirty-seven patients (67 eyes) who had transscleral fixation of the capsular bag using a CTR fixated with 9-0 or 10-0 polypropylene (Prolene), 8-0 polytetrafluoroethylene (Gore-Tex), or 9-0 nylon were identified. The mean age at time of surgery was 7.25 years (2 to 18 years) and the mean follow-up was 35.3 months (0.25 to 120 months). The proportion of eyes showing improvement in corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) postoperatively was 78.5%, which demonstrated significance with a 95% confidence interval. In the immediate postoperative period, 1 eye developed a hyphema and 1 eye required IOL repositioning. Long-term complications included posterior capsule opacification in 35 eyes (52%) and uveitis–glaucoma–hyphema syndrome in 1 eye (1.5%). Three eyes (4.4 %) required IOL repositioning for spontaneous delayed IOL dislocation, 2 sutured with 8-0 polytetrafluoroethylene at postoperative month 8 and postoperative year 3 and 1 sutured with 9-0 polypropylene at postoperative year 7. Conclusion Transscleral fixation of the capsular bag using a CTR improved CDVA and provided IOL stability in pediatric patients with ectopia lentis.