Intraocular lens

An intraocular lens device for insertion within an eye having a lens portion placed against one side of the iris, means for stabilizing the lens portion extending through the pupil, and anchor means passing through an iris opening.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a novel device usable as an intraocular 
lens within the eye to correct visual loss which occurs, for example, 
after cataract removal. 
The clouding of the eye's natural lens, located behind the iris, is 
generally known as a cataract. To prevent blindness the accepted medical 
procedure entails removal of the natural lens. After removal, the 
patient's vision must be corrected because of the loss of the lens. 
Correction of vision has been effected in different ways. The first method 
fits the patient with spectacles or glasses. However, this reduces 
peripheral vision by about 65% and magnifies objects seen by about one 
third. If cataract removal was performed in only one eye, which is often 
the case, double vision would result because of the magnification problem. 
Employment of contact lenses represent a better solution, since objects are 
only magnified by 8-10% and the patient's field of vision remains about 
the same as before lens removal. However, contact lenses cannot be worn by 
50-90% of cataract patients, since they are usually elderly. 
The intraocular lens was first conceived by Ridley and implanted in an eye 
as early as 1949. Dislocation of the lens caused its discontinuance. Later 
designs included the Lieb lens described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,834,023, which 
described an anterior chamber lens having loops formed of a thin resilient 
rod. Corneal dystrophy, and therefore blindness, occured when the loops 
contact the endothelium on the inner surface of the cornea. The 
endothelium is a corneal cellular layer which may die upon touching and 
usually does not regenerate. 
Later designs included posterior lenses such as the one described in U.S. 
Pat. to, Flom, No. 3,866,249. Difficulty of insertion of such lenses has 
precluded their use in most cases. 
The most recent anterior chamber designs such as those described in U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,673,616 to Fedorov et al, and in the Binkhorst-Worst, C. D. 
"Twenty Years Experience With Pseudophakia: Some Thoughts on the Fixation 
of Intraocular Lenses, " presented at the First International Course on 
Pseudophekia, Netherlands, June 1974, include loops that pass through the 
pupils. The most frequent problem encountered is that intraocular lens 
incorporating later anterior chamber designs tend to dislocate with the 
opening and closing of the pupil. This has, to a certain extent, been 
controlled with dilating and constricting chemicals. The Binkhorst-Worst 
lenses include the design of an anterior hook engaging a posterior loop 
through an iridectomy opening. Thus, one end of the lens rides with the 
opening and closing of the sphincter and dilator muscles of the iris. 
Placement of this lens has proved difficult because the mating of hook and 
loop is posterior to the iris. Likewise, the Binkhorst-Worst lens having 
suture holes within the haptic of the lens poses the danger that the 
suture material will deteriorate with time and will cause a dislocation of 
the intraocular lens. The use of metal wire sutures has proved undesirable 
since the maneuvering and fixing of such sutures is difficult. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with the present invention an intraocular lens device is 
provided which overcomes the problems associated with the prior art, the 
lens device includes as its basic elements a lens portion placed against a 
side portion of the iris covering a portion of the pupil to correct the 
vision of the eye. The lens has stabilizing means which may take the form 
of single or multiple loops affixed to the lens poriton which extend 
through the pupil to the other side of the iris with respect to the lens 
portion. An anchor means passes through an iris opening, such as an 
iridotomy, and serves to hold the lens over the pupil. The combination of 
the loop or loops with the anchor means secures the lens to a portion of 
the iris. 
The loop and anchor means may be separate or integral or contiguous. The 
loop may take a variety of forms, such as semicircular, serpentine, winged 
and the like. 
The lens portion may be placed anteriorly or posteriorly in relation to the 
iris and may include a lens and a haptic affixed thereto. Suture holes may 
be provided in the lens and haptic to back-up the anchor means to 
positively prevent dislocation of the lens device while in use. 
The anchor means may be effected in a number of ways including a flexible 
loop of generally oval configuration, a deformable generally T-shaped loop 
and the like. The anchor means may pass through the iridotomy from either 
side of the iris. 
The device may have many equivalent structures, some of which will be 
further explained herein. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide an intraocular lens to 
correct the vision of an eye after cataract removal. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a lens device 
mountable on a side of the iris and fixed thereto correcting the vision of 
the eye during dilation and constriction of the pupil. 
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a lens device 
which utilizes an opening in the iris to anchor the lens to the iris. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a device to correct 
the vision of an eye after extra capsular or intracapsular cataract 
removal with a minimum possibility of dislocation of the device or 
interference with the normal functioning of the eye. 
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an intraocular 
lens device to safely and efficiently correct the vision of the eye better 
than can be obtained with the use of spectacles or contact lens. 
The invention possesses other objects and advantages, especially as 
concerns particular features and characteristics thereof, which will 
become apparent as the specification continues.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The device as a whole is depicted by reference character 10 and alternate 
embodiments are subsequently identified by the reference character and a 
letter eg: 10A, 10B, etc. The device 10 (FIG. 2) includes a lens 12 of 
biconvex or plano-convex configuration having an optical center 14. The 
lens may be constructed of transparent non-reactive material such as 
monomer-free polymethylmethacrylate and the like. 
The device 10 may also include a haptic 16 to provide ease in handling the 
device 10, but imparts no optical function to lens 12. The lens portion 13 
includes lens 12 and a haptic 16 in certain cases. The device 10 further 
shows means for stabilizing the lens portion 13, for example, at least one 
loop 18 affixed to the lens 12 and extending through the pupil 20 of eye 
22, (Pupil shown in phantom in FIGS. 1 and 2) which has an iris 24. Loop 
18 may rest against a portion of iris 24, as shown in FIG. 3, but in any 
case, positions on the opposite side of iris 24 from lens portion 13. The 
loop 18 may be composed of platinum, platinum alloy, nylon, gold, titanium 
and the like; the criteria being that the loop material is non-reactive to 
the body tissue and capable of being fixed to the lens 12. Loop 18 may 
also be affixed to the haptic 16, if necessary. 
The device 10 also includes as one of its elements means 26 for anchoring 
the lens 12 such that it lies over the pupil 20 and corrects the vision of 
eye 22. The anchoring means 26 may be the structure shown in FIGS. 2-4 
where a roughly T-shaped loop is formed, which extends through an iris 
opening 28. As with loop 18, the construction materials are the same when 
anchor means 26 takes the configuration shown. The anchor means 26 may be 
flexible rigid or rigid and deformable depending on the desired structure. 
Turning to FIGS. 3 and 4, the device 10 positions beneath cornea 30 and, in 
this case, on the outer side of iris 24 or in the anterior chamber 32 of 
eye 22. The loop 18 passes through pupil 20 into the posterior chamber 34. 
The natural lens of the eye has been removed ie: intracapsular cataract 
removal, but the device 10 will perform its task equally whether 
intracapsular or extracapsular (a bowl-shaped portion of the natural lens 
remains) cataract removal takes place. As will be observed, the anchor 
means 26 fits within opening 24, which is preferably an iridotomy as shown 
in FIGS. 1-4 (to be further explained hereafter). FIG. 3 represents the 
relatively constricted pupil, about two (2) millimeters in diameter. The 
device 10 maintains its optical center above a portion of the pupil 20, 
thus correcting the vision of eye 22. FIG. 4 illustrates a drastic 
dilation of the eye to 7 or 8 millimeters in diameter, which may naturally 
occurs in darkness or during excitment. As can be seen, the device 10 
resists dislocation since the anchor means 26 rests on the iris 24. It 
should be noted that the force of gravity acts to pull the device 10 from 
right to left in FIGS. 3 and 4. As described in FIG. 1, the eye is right 
side up; anchor means 26 associated with iridotomy 28 in the upper portion 
of eye 22. As can be seen, the device 10 works well in an opening 28 that 
has a long vertical dimension, although this is not absolutely necessary 
to its functioning properly. 
As an indication of the relative size of the device 10 and its environment, 
the lens 12 has a diameter of about five (5) millimeters and the lens 
portion 13 having both a lens 12 and haptic 16, measures about six (6) 
millimeters in diameter (the diameter of a typical human iris is 11 to 12 
millimeters). The loops 18 and anchor means 26 of device 10 have a maximum 
radius of 3.5 to 4.0 millimeters to prevent endothelial touch and minimize 
inflamation of the surrounding tissue when in place. 
Turning to FIG. 5, another embodiment of the device 10A is depicted 
including a lens 12A, haptic 16A, and anchor means 26A. The device 10A 
also provides suture holes 36 and 38 to allow the insertion of sutures 
through the iris as a back-up to anchor means 26A. Loops 40 and 42 prevent 
dislocation of the device 10A toward the anterior chamber 32 and cornea 
30. 
FIG. 8 illustrates yet another variation of the device, 10B, which includes 
loops 40B and 42B which set in the posterior chamber 34. The anchor means 
26B represents a flexible loop attached to either the lens 12B or haptic 
16B. The loop of anchor means 26B may be constructed of nylon, spring 
steel or any non-reactive resilient material. 
FIG. 6 represents another lens structure 10C which includes a lens 12C 
without a haptic. The anchor means 26C is integral with loop 18C having 
wings 44 and 46 that perform the same function as loops 40 and 42 of 
device 10A. In contast, the anchor means 26C is a termination of the loop 
18C and passes through iris opening 28 from the posterior chamber 34 to 
the anterior chamber 32, as clearly shown in FIG. 7. 
Other embodiments of the device 10 include lens devices 10D and 10E in 
FIGS. 9 and 10. Anchor means 26D and 26E are similar to anchor means 26C 
in that they pass through opening 28 from the posterior to the anterior 
chambers 34 and 32. The anchor means 26D includes posts 48D and 50D 
affixed to lens 12D. In comparison, the device 10E has posts 48E and 50E 
which are further apart than posts 48D and 50D. Loops 18D and 18E include 
posts 52D and 52E and 54D and 54E appending from lens 12D and 12E 
respectively. When pupil 20 (shown in phantom) constricts the posts 48D, 
50D, 52D and 54D would form the pupil 20 into a roughly triangular shape 
while posts 48E, 50E, 52E and 54E would form pupil 20 into a roughly 
square shape. Either shape has been found to permit excellent vision of 
eye 22 in combination with device 10D and 10E. 
In operation, the lens device 10 is placed against the iris 24 after 
partial or entire removal of the natural lens of the eye and incision in 
the cornea. The iris opening 28 is made, which permits use of the anchor 
means 26. A normal cataract operation requires an iridectomy or iridotomy 
to permit flow of aqueous humor from the posterior chamber 34 to the 
anterior chamber 32. 
The anchor means 26 is inserted through the iris opening 28 either from the 
anterior chamber 32 to the posterior chamber 34 or visa versa and the loop 
or loops 18 are placed on the opposite side of the iris 24 with respect to 
the lens 12. Where the anchor means 26 is a flexible loop 26B the 
insertion is performed by squeezing the loop together to form a elongated 
body that slips through the iris opening. Where the anchor means 26 is a 
rigid member, the anchor maneuvers into place by stretching the opening 
28, similar to the process of opening a button hole before insertion of a 
button; and then inserting the anchor means 26. Anchor means 26 may also 
take the form of a deformable body that can be twisted to fit within the 
opening 28 and then retwisted to prevent its passing back through the 
opening 28. The anchor means should be fixed to the portion of the iris in 
the vicinity of the iris opening 28, as an end result. In addition, the 
anchor may travel along a portion of the iridotomy 28, as heretofore 
explained during dilation and constriction of the pupil. 
While in the foregoing specification, embodiments of the invention have 
been set forth in considerable detail for purposes of making a complete 
disclosure of the invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary 
skill in the art that numerous changes may be made in such details without 
departing from the spirit and principle of the invention.