Purpose
To assess the incidence of acute-onset endophthalmitis after separate bilateral cataract surgeries less than 5 days apart (SBCS5).
Methods
The medical records of all patients who underwent SBCS5 at a single medical center between October 10, 2012 and July 31, 2017 were retrospectively reviewed.
Results
The medical records for treatment of 5374 eyes of 2687 patients were examined. The mean interval between the first and second surgeries was 3 days. No case of bilateral simultaneous endophthalmitis was observed. Unilateral endophthalmitis developed in five eyes of five patients. Thus, the incidence of endophthalmitis after SBCS5 was 0.093%. All cases of endophthalmitis occurred in the first operated eye. SBCS5 was 15% less expensive than unilateral cataract surgery.
Conclusion
The incidence of endophthalmitis after SBCS5 was acceptably low with topical but not intracamaral antibiotic prophylaxis. SBCS5 was also less expensive than unilateral cataract surgery.