Assessment of Anterior Chamber Depth and Angle width among Patients undergoing Cataract Surgery in Suez Canal University Hospital in Ismailia City

Abstract

Background: Cataract causes half of all cases of blindness and 33% of visual impairment worldwide. The sole viable treatment for  cataracts is surgery including phacoemulsification and posterior chamber intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. Cataract surgery lowers  intraocular pressure (IOP) in both glaucomatous and non-glaucomatous eyes via altering the anterior chamber (AC) architecture.

Objective: This study aimed to assess anterior chamber depth (ACD) and angle width (ACAW) using Pentacam before and after cataract surgery.

Patients and Methods: This study involved 20 eyes of 20 patients having cataract surgery. About 55% were males and 45% were females  with mean age of 58.25 ± 8.83 years. Pentacam was used to measure ACD and ACAW before and after cataract surgery.

Results: The  study showed significant increase in anterior chamber depth and in angle width after cataract surgery (2.72 ± 0.42 before vs. 3.36 ± 0.77  after, p=0.001). ACD showed significant negative moderate correlation with age before surgery (r=-0.521, p=0.018). Also, there was a  significant increase in ACAW after surgery (35.11 ± 10.55 before vs. 45.4 ± 12.01 after, p<0.001). Angle width showed significant direct  strong correlation before and after surgery (r=0.785, p<0.001).

Conclusion: Pentacam is a good method for obtaining quantitative data  regarding anterior chamber configuration. ACD and angle width significantly increased after cataract surgery