The 8th annual ESCRS Clinical Trends Survey was launched at the 2022 Congress in Milan. This survey received 1,715 responses and built upon the success of prior surveys which have already included over 10,000 participants.

The survey asked ESCRS delegates key questions related to current issues they face in their practice on a regular basis. Topics included presbyopia correction, astigmatism management, ocular surface disease, glaucoma, and, as shown here, cataract extraction.

One key finding is that while the divide and conquer method is the most commonly preferred technique for breaking up the nucleus during phacoemulsification, the higher volume surgeons tend to do less divide and conquer and more of the chop techniques. The likely reason for this
is that divide and conquer is commonly taught and great for beginners, it’s clear that as volume and likely experience increase, doctors tend to gravitate towards other methods. Chop techniques, particularly vertical chop, are faster, utilize less ultrasound, and therefore offer increased safety and efficiency, which might explain why higher-volume surgeons prefer this technique.

More information on the survey and results on other topics can be found here in the September 2023 edition of EUROTIMES.