Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2019 May;98(20):e15720.
doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000015720.

Haptic fracture and dislocation of polyimide intraocular lens after neodymium: YAG laser capsulotomy: A case report

Affiliations
Case Reports

Haptic fracture and dislocation of polyimide intraocular lens after neodymium: YAG laser capsulotomy: A case report

Jae Suk Kim et al. Medicine (Baltimore). 2019 May.

Abstract

Rationale: We report a case of haptic fracture of polyimide intraocular lens (IOL) and its dislocation after neodymium:YAG (Nd:YAG) laser capsulotomy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of both the fracture and dislocation of the IOL after laser posterior capsulotomy.

Patient concerns: A 78-year-old male was referred to our clinic with a history of decreased visual acuity after Nd:YAG laser posterior capsulotomy in the right eye. A dislocated IOL was observed on slit lamp examination.

Diagnosis: On slit-lamp examination, dislocated IOL with intact anterior capsulorrhexis margin was observed in the right eye.

Interventions: We removed the dislocated IOL and fixed a 3-piece IOL (Acrysof MN60AC, Alcon Laboratories, Inc) in the ciliary sulcus under retrobulbar anesthesia.

Outcomes: After the operation, the observed uncorrected distance visual acuity (UCVA) was 20/20 and the measured intraocular pressure (IOP) was 18 mmHg; the IOL was fixed in the ciliary sulcus.

Lessons: Three-piece, silicone-polyimide haptics in IOLs can get fractured after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. Thus, it is suggested that sufficient haptic dilation should be ensured while performing Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy in patients with polyimide haptics. Moreover, a small-sized capsulotomy is likely to be helpful in such patients.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Anterior segment photographs at patient's first visit. Dislocated IOL was observed in the right eye. IOL = intraocular lens.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Intra-operative photographs showing fractured polyimide distal haptic.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Fractured haptic of the polyimide intraocular lens after extraction.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Fractured haptic of the polyimide intraocular lens after in vitro neodymium:YAG laser treatment.

References

    1. Hsiao SH, Yang CP, Chen HS. Synthesis and properties of ortho-linked aromatic polyimides based on 1,2-bis (4-aminophenoxy)-4-tert-butylbenzene. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 2000;38:1551–9.
    1. Yang CP, Hsiao SH, Chen CH. Aromatic poly (ether imide)s bearing isopropylidene or hexafluoroisopropylidene links in the main chain. Polymer J 1997;29:944–8.
    1. Richardson RR, Jr, Miller JA, Reichert WM. Polyimides as biomaterials: preliminary biocompatibility testing. Biomaterials 1993;14:627–35. - PubMed
    1. Stallings S, Werner L, Chayet A, et al. Intraocular polyimide intraocular lens haptic breakage long-term postoperatively. J Cataract Refract Surg 2014;40:323–6. - PubMed
    1. Kang H, Han KE, Kim TI, et al. Spontaneous fracture of an implanted posterior chamber polyimide intraocular lens haptic: a case report. Indian J Ophthalmol 2014;62:348–50. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types