Intra-Ocular Lenses (IOLs) are a common necessity in complex ophthalmic operations, especially those involving glaucoma and cataracts. Until date, not many technologies have produced successful IOLs, but next-generation technologies have shown promise in making compatible IOLs, which could be the future of presbyopian corrections amongst the elderly.
According to Dr. Jorge L. Alió, MD, PhD, a consultant to Akkolens and Oculentis, multifocal lenses would soon give way to these IOLs. As quoted by Dr. Jorge at the meeting of the European Society of Ophthalmology, “Once accommodative IOLs are developed adequately, multifocal IOLs will be unable to compete. Multifocal optics will always require some degree of adaptation.”
The latest technologies producing these lenses include the FluidVision (PowerVision) and the Sapphire (Elenza), as well as in-the-sulcus models, such as the DynaCurve (NuLens) and the Lumina (Akkolens/Oculentis).
In Dr. Jorge’s opinion, the sulcus implanted lenses hold more promise because the capsular bag naturally develops fibrosis and atrophy once it is emptied, and there are no functions and no anatomical reasons for it to exist.
He added, “The structural source of kinetic energy is the anterior capsule, which generates axial, centripetal and centrifugal forces that we can exploit to re-establish accommodation.”
The lumina lenses when compared with monofocal IOLs implanted in 50 patients showed better resolutions as power changes were produced by two elements shifting in the plane perpendicular to the optical axis. “The lens showed good results, with evidence of accommodation between 1.5 D and 6 D by objective WAM measurements and subjective defocus curve at 6 months,” Alió said.