Annual ISRS/AAO survey reflects 15% drop in refractive procedures

Eyeworld

In its ninth year, and its first year completed online, the ISRS/AAO annual survey provided insights into national trends in refractive surgery. Among the findings Richard J. Duffey, M.D., Mobile, Ala., presented included ISRS/AAO members endured about a 15% dip in refractive procedures last year. Most of the losses were seen in LASIK volume, but the drop was not “across the board” for all refractive procedures. In fact, Dr. Duffey said refractive lens exchange procedures and phakic intraocular (IOL) implantations both went up last year, to 8% and 16% of refractive procedures, respectively. The VISX laser system (Abbott Medical Optics, AMO, Santa Ana, Calif.) continues to be the most popular system, but the WaveLight system (Alcon, Fort Worth, Texas) is also gaining in popularity and last year was no different. VISX’s popularity has dropped to 2:1 ratio to WaveLight, Dr. Duffey said. In refractive multifocal IOLs, Crystalens (Bausch & Lomb, Rochester, N.Y.) remains the most popular with ReStor (Alcon) not far behind. In a distant third is the Tecnis Multifocal (AMO), which has essentially replaced the ReZoom among those surveyed, Dr. Duffey said.