SMILE, cataract!

In the May 2023 edition of the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Anouar Elotmani and colleagues published an article about calculating IOL power in patients who have had SMILE.

Wait a minute, what is SMILE? SMILE is a technique of altering the cornea to change glasses prescription. Unlike the better known LASIK, there is no flap created in the cornea in order to effect this change. Instead, a portion of the cornea is cut with a laser and removed from a small incision.

We know that LASIK alters the cornea in such a way that, when patients later need cataract surgery, special calculations need to be done to figure the IOL power. The IOL is an artificial lens that replaces the cataract, and different people need different powers.

Dr. Elotmani’s paper gives us some early hints about how to calculate IOL power in patients who have had SMILE and then need cataract surgery. This is the first I have ever seen of post-SMILE cataract surgery calculations, and it is definitely important to learn more about!