ICL implantation may improve quality of life in high myopes

The authors of this study found that patients with implantable collamer lenses (ICLs) scored significantly higher on a quality-of-life questionnaire compared with similarly matched myopes who wore contact lenses. They concluded that ICL implantation may offer significant quality-of-life advantages compared with contact lens wear in highly myopic patients.

Subjects in the study were 41 consecutive bilateral ICL implantation patients and a control group of 41 contact lens wearers with a similar starting level of high myopia. Approximately two-thirds of the ICL patients wore contact lenses before surgery. Postoperative uncorrected visual acuity in the ICL patients was similar to contact lens-corrected visual acuity in the control patients. Both patient groups completed the Quality of Life Impact of Refraction Correction (QIRC) questionnaire during a semistructured interview that took place a median of eight months after second eye surgery in ICL patients.

The ICL patients said they were very satisfied with the results of the procedure. Additionally, their overall QIRC scores were significantly higher compared with the control contact lens wearers. The high QIRC scores in ICL recipients were driven by significantly higher scores for individual items relating to the subjective value of relative freedom from reliance on refractive correction upon waking, while travelling and while participating in sports, particularly water-based ones.

Financial Disclosures
Dr. Randleman receives lecture fees from Alcon, Inc., Allergan, Inc., and ISTA Pharmaceuticals.