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
Review
. 2024 Feb 14:18:459-472.
doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S453040. eCollection 2024.

Update on Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery: A Review

Ramiro M P C Salgado  1 , Paulo F A A S Torres  2 , Antonio A P Marinho  3
Affiliations
Review

Update on Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Cataract Surgery: A Review

Ramiro M P C Salgado et al. Clin Ophthalmol. .

Abstract

The advent of femtosecond lasers has resulted in a new standard in cataract surgery, intended to overmatch the paradigm of conventional phacoemulsification. Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) enables a higher level of reproducibility, precision, accuracy, and customization when performing several steps of cataract (or lens) surgery. Capsulotomy, corneal incisions, lens fragmentation, and arcuate incisions are the main procedures performed using FLACS. As the demand for better refractive outcomes and spectacle independence increases, the features of FLACS are highly relevant, especially when considering the implantation of premium intraocular lenses, such as toric, enhanced depth-of-focus, or multifocal lenses. The present article reviews the state of the art of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract (lens) surgery, contemplating the advantages and limitations of the two types of femtosecond laser pulses available (high and low energy) by evaluating their reported outcomes and complications.

Keywords: FLACS; cataract surgery; femtosecond laser; laser-assisted surgery.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Lundstrom M, Dickman M, Henry Y, et al. Risk factors for refractive error after cataract surgery: analysis of 282,811 cataract extractions reported to the European registry of quality outcomes for cataract and refractive surgery. J Cataract Refract Surg. 2018;44(447):52. doi:10.1016/j.jcrs.2018.01.031 - DOI - PubMed
    1. National Guideline Alliance. Cataracts in Adults: Management. London, UK: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (UK); 2017. - PubMed
    1. Strickland D, Mourou G. Compression of amplified chirped optical pulses. Opt Commun. 1985. doi:10.1016/0030-4018(85)90120-8 - DOI
    1. Ali MH, Javaid M, Jamal S, Butt NH. Femtosecond laser assisted cataract surgery, beginning of a new era in cataract surgery. Oman J Ophthalmol. 2015;8(3):141–146. doi:10.4103/0974-620X.169892 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Vogel A, Busch S, Jungnickel K, Birngruber R. Mechanisms of intraocular photodisruption with picosecond and nanosecond laser pulses. Lasers Surg Med. 1994;15:32–43. doi:10.1002/lsm.1900150106 - DOI - PubMed