%0 Journal Article %T The effect of uneventful cataract surgery on Schlemm's canal and the trabecular meshwork in cases with pseudoexfoliation. %A Alpogan O %A Tekcan H %A Imamoglu S %A Ozturk Y %A Bolac R %J Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol %V 262 %N 4 %D 2024 Apr 23 %M 38141058 %F 3.535 %R 10.1007/s00417-023-06349-x %X OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of uneventful cataract surgery on Schlemm's canal (SC) and the trabecular meshwork (TM) in cases with pseudoexfoliation (PX).
METHODS: In this prospective study, 37 PX and 37 normal eyes, who underwent cataract surgery, were included. The PX group was further divided into two subgroups: PX syndrome (PXS) and PX glaucoma (PXG). Preoperative complete ophthalmologic examination, anterior segment (AS) imaging using a Scheimpflug camera, and measurements of SC length and area and TM thickness and length using AS optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) were performed in all cases. All measurements were repeated at the first and third months after surgery.
RESULTS: Preoperative intraocular pressure (IOP), AS parameters, SC, and TM values showed no significant differences between the groups (p > 0.05). After surgery, there was a significant increase in AS parameter values and a significant decrease in IOP values in both the PX and control groups (p < 0.05). The nasal and temporal SC area showed a significant increase in the PX group after surgery (p = 0.007, p = 0.003, respectively). In the subgroup analysis, the only significant change in the nasal and temporal SC area was in the PXS group (p = 0.006, p = 0.003, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Cataract surgery resulted in an increase in the SC area in patients with PXS. This increase may be due to multiple mechanisms including the IOP-lowering effect of cataract removal, change in AS, and removal of intraocular PX material after surgery.