Selected pre-operative and intraoperative factors affecting changes in corneal endothelial cell density three months after phacoemulsification at a private eye hospital in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate selected patient factors that affect endothelial cell loss 3 months following
phacoemulsification surgery.
Methods: This was a prospective cohort study carried out at a single center, Eagle Eye and Laser Center, Nairobi,
Kenya that has a Tomey 3000 specular microscope. All patients undergoing phacoemulsification surgery during
the study period were included. The collected data was entered into Microsoft Excel and analyzed using SPSS
Results: Average age was 65±12.327 with a M:F ratio of 1.2:1. Forty-one eyes of 33 patients were studied and
showed an overall endothelial cell loss of 7.2%. Diabetes was associated with more endothelial cell loss while
longer axial length was associated with less endothelial cell loss.
Conclusion: Phacoemulsification surgery is safe despite inevitable minimal loss in endothelial cells. Care should
be taken when operating on diabetic patients due to their susceptibility to more cell loss.