State of the Art in Pediatric Cataract Surgery

Pediatric cataract surgery has evolved dramatically in the past 10 years. Our understanding of the child's eye both in terms of tissue mechanics, neurobiological plasticity and physiological growth has allowed better and better surgical outcomes. The fact remains that the younger the child - infants especially - the more difficult the surgery. It is also true to say that not only is a child's eye not a small adult eye, but also that the child him- or herself is not a small adult. The importance of this statement is evident when we discuss the effects of anesthesia and fluid input in infants during infant cataract surgery. This chapter discusses the factors that should help give a child the best possible outcome after cataract surgery including timing of surgery, type of operation, biometry, the size and type of intraocular lens material , postoperative refraction, operative considerations, wound size and type, capsule management, anterior vitrectomy technique, wound closure and viscoelastic removal and perioperative medications.