Iris photocoagulation therapy of aphakic pupillary block
J. C. Patti and A. A. Cinotti
Five patients who underwent uneventful cataract extraction developed flat
anterior chamber (AC) secondary to pupillary block, 2 1/2 to 4 weeks
postoperatively. None had a wound leak. After drug therapy had failed to
restore the AC, iris photocoagulation was performed. Four eyes were treated
with a xenon-arc photocoagulator, and one with both a portable xenon-arc
unit and an argon laser. The AC deepened immediately and permanently in all
cases. No complications occurred, and visual acuity was good. Iris
photocoagulation with a xenon-arc unit is a valid alternative to
intraocular surgery in therapy for flat AC that is caused by aphakic
pupillary block in patients in whom medicinal therapy fails and no wound
leak is present.
