Straylight in posterior polar cataract

PURPOSE: To study straylight before and after posterior polar cataract removal.

SETTING: Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

DESIGN: Prospective case series.

METHODS: Patients diagnosed with posterior polar cataract who agreed to cataract surgery were included in the study. Intraocular straylight was measured before and after surgery with the compensation comparison method using a straylight meter (C-Quant).

RESULTS: Measurements were performed on 8 eyes of 4 patients. The mean preoperative corrected distance visual acuity was relatively good (0.15 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution [logMAR] ± 0.18 (SD). The mean postoperative CDVA was -0.08 ± 0.09 logMAR (P < .01). The mean preoperative straylight was extreme (2.01 ± 0.38 log[s]), 13 times that of a young normal eye; however, it improved postoperatively to 1.04 ± 0.26 log(s) (P < .01).

CONCLUSIONS: Straylight in eyes with posterior polar cataract patients can be extremely bothersome, while visual acuity is relatively well preserved. Surgery was effective in lowering straylight levels. For these patients, straylight measurements can help objectively measure the quality of vision complaints, and elevated straylight levels can be an indication for surgery independent of visual acuity.