Calcification of Different Designs of Silicone Intraocular Lenses in Eyes with Asteroid Hyalosis

Effects of Intraocular Lens Opacification on Light Scatter, Stray Light, and Overall Optical Quality/Performance

“…The deposits could be partially removed with Nd:YAG laser, but there was a reaccumulation after the procedure because the asteroid bodies are rich in calcium/phosphate. [8][9][10] Snowflake degeneration is a slowly progressive condition; it is the result of PMMA degradation caused by long-term ultraviolet light exposure, not calcium deposition. The degree of optic opacification of the majority of the PMMA lenses included in this study may take 10 to 20 years to develop.…”

“…[2][3][4][5][6][7] Silicone lenses were also shown to calcify in eyes with asteroid hyalosis. [8][9][10] The condition named snowflake degeneration of rigid polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) lenses still leads to explantation of a significant number of these IOLs, although it is usually observed in three-piece lenses manufactured in the 80s and early 90s. 11,12 Calcification and snowflake degeneration are leading causes of clinically significant IOL opacification.…”

Microscopic analysis of opacification in Ioflex® hydrophilic acrylic intraocular lenses

“…The IOLs in each of these cases came from different lots, which might have had different susceptibilities to develop the complication. Previous papers have described IOL calcification in patients with ocular diseases, such as uveitis and asteroid hialosis (this latter in relation to silicone IOLs) (1,15) . Besides diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy in case 3, none of our cases had other past ocular inflammatory diseases.…”

Silicone intraocular lens surface calcification in a patient with asteroid hyalosis

“…Silicone IOLs, which are polymers of silicone and oxygen, are considered to be very stable and inert in vivo, and unlike acrylic IOLs rarely adhere to either tissues or foreign bodies [9,10]. Although the calcification of silicone IOLs has been reported [6,7,11], its mechanism has not yet been elucidated. In this study, calcification of the posterior IOL surface was observed in the region where the posterior capsule had been disrupted by Nd:YAG treatment.…”

“…However, the observation that a silicone IOL had calcification deposits on its posterior surface suggests that a substance of the IOL may be responsible for this calcification, since recent silicone IOLs are not reported to have such deposits. Sixteen silicone IOLs' calcification reports suggest that some silicone IOLs showed calcification [11]. It can be said that there is a relation between calcium or phosphorus concentrations and certain materials found in the silicone IOLs.…”