Anterior chamber contamination during phacoemulsification and manual small-incision cataract surgery.

Abstract

To compare the per-operative contamination of anterior chamber among eyes undergoing manual small-incision cataract surgery (MSICS) and phacoemulsification (PE). Prospective, randomized, interventional clinical trial. In this study conducted at a tertiary-care center in southern India, 150 eyes undergoing cataract surgery were randomly allocated to undergo MSICS (group A, 75 eyes) and PE (group B, 75 eyes). Aqueous samples were taken before and at the end of surgery. Collected material was subjected to standard microbiological analysis. No preoperative antibiotics were used, but povidone-iodine 5% drops were instilled before surgery. Main outcome measures studied were the incidence of positive cultures in aqueous samples obtained from eyes in both groups. The incidence of anterior chamber contamination in the MSICS group (4%) did not significantly differ from the PE group (2.7%; P = .65). Incidence of anterior chamber contamination is similar among eyes undergoing MSICS and PE.