Routine Use of Intracameral Kenalog Following Phacoemulsification Has No Effect on Intraocular Pressure

1. Dharmendra (Dave) Patel, MD
2. Robynn Tolboe

Mayo Clinic Arizona, Scottsdale, AZ USA

Purpose:
To demonstrate the safety of injecting Kenalog intracamerally following routine cataract surgery.

Background:
To reduce post-operative inflammation following cataract extraction steroids are routinely used. Intravitreal Kenalog has shown positive outcomes to reduce intraocular inflammation. However, concerns of intraocular (IOP) rise have prevented its routine use in surgery. We propose that a low dose intracameral injection of Kenalog can be tolerated and IOP is not affected.

Methods:
Patients undergoing phacoemulsification with intraocular lens placement were given 1mg dose of Kenalog intracamerally at the end of surgery. Rate of post-operative infection and elevation of IOP from baseline were evaluated up to 6 months following surgery.

Results:
In 71 cases, the mean pre-operative IOP was 16.17  10.56 (range 10-32) and the post-operative IOP was 15.75  10.22 (range 9-30).
There were zero cases of infection and no significant cases of elevation of IOP from baseline.

Conclusion:
Given the nonexistent rate of infection and insignificant rate of IOP elevation in over 70 consecutive cases, intracameral administration of Kenalog appears to be safe and well tolerated.