JP4473217B2 - Implantable artificial lens - Google Patents

Description

Related statement

  This specification is a continuation-in-part specification of US patent application Ser. No. 10/280918, filed Oct. 25, 2002 and is incorporated herein by reference.

  The present invention relates to all accommodation artificial lens implants (IOLs) that contain refractive materials therein that surgically replace the natural lens and correct refractive errors in the human eyeball.

  An ocular refractive error affects the ability to focus the image correctly on the retina as changes occur in the refractive medium of the eye, such as the cornea, the innate lens, or both. Refractive abnormalities relevant to this specification include myopia, hyperopia, and presbyopia. Myopia extends the cornea and increases the focal length of the eye, so it lacks the ability to focus on an image far away from the viewer. Hyperopia does not refract light correctly on the retina because the cornea does not extend sufficiently or is flat and lacks the ability to focus on objects near the viewer. Instead, the light that enters the eye does not bend so sharply as to focus on the retina. In contrast to myopia, where the image is focused in front of the retina, hyperopia connects the image behind the retina. Presbyopia is another type of refractive error, which occurs when the natural lens becomes hard and the eye loses the ability to focus. The hardened natural lens prevents focusing on objects near the viewer. Presbyopia occurs in conjunction with myopia and hyperopia.

  Known treatments vary depending on the type of refractive error that is desired to be corrected. Each refractive error can be corrected with a lens of external glasses. Also, technically known refractive correction surgery to correct the refractive errors described above, including radial keratotomy, astigmatic keratotomy, laser refractive correction keratotomy, and laser intracorneal cutting (LASICK) . Each of the refractive correction procedures described above involves multiple incisions to change the shape of the cornea. Side effects of refractive surgery include irregular astigmatism, infection, or haze formation, which can permanently change the cornea and lose the best calibration vision. The above refractive correction surgery may be undercorrected or excessive. Furthermore, none of these refractive correction procedures can correct all of the refractive errors cited above.

  Many IOLs have been used to treat cataracts. It was in 1949 that the IOL was first implanted in the eye to treat cataracts. This experimental operation attempted to place an alternative lens in the posterior chamber behind the iris. Problems such as dislocation after implantation forced this effort to be abandoned, and then the IOL was implanted in the anterior chamber for some time.

  Others returned to the procedure of implanting the IOL behind the iris of the eyeball known as the posterior chamber. This is where the patient's natural lens is located. When the IOL is in this innate position, the patient may be returned to substantially normal vision, making it less likely that the vitreous fluid movement and retinal detachment encountered in the anterior chamber IOL will occur. Implanting an IOL into the posterior chamber is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,718,870, 3866249, 3913148, 3925825, 4014552, 4041552, 4053953, and 4285072. None of these IOLs have the ability to adjust perspective.

  The focusable IOL provided the wearer with an alternative as close as possible to the natural lens. Tennant U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,509 discloses an IOL that moves forward by contraction of the ciliary body and is located in front of the iris. Although Tenant's IOL claims to have accommodation properties, it presents the same disadvantages as other anterior chamber lenses. Banko U.S. Pat. No. 4,253,199 addresses the problem of providing a focusable IOL in a different way, providing an alternative IOL sewn to the ciliary body made of a deformable material. This IOL functions in much the same way as the natural lens, but requires sutures and can cause bleeding.

  Levy U.S. Pat. No. 4,409,691 claims to provide a accommodation IOL located within the optic follicle. This IOL is located in the posterior region of the eye follicle and is biased toward the fovea side of the eyeball, that is, to the rear. This Levy's IOL is incomplete because, in the case of near vision, the ciliary muscles exert a force on the optic vesicles through the ciliary zonule because the optical lens is moved forward by pushing the haptics inward There is a need. However, since the ciliary zonule is a soft fibrous form, the ciliary muscle cannot exert a force during contraction, and the eye follicle cannot exert a compressive force only by tension. The natural elasticity of the IOL makes the eye follicle more rotationally circular due to the contraction of the ciliary muscle. In this way, the inward force that compresses the tactile sensation of Levy's IOL is not exerted on the follicle, and therefore cannot be adapted to near vision. Even if such a force is obtained in some way, the tactile sense of Levy's IOL is inwardly loaded when adapted to near vision. Since the normal state of the follicle is to adjust to near vision, the tactile sensation of Levy's IOL is loaded, reducing the useful life of a tactile sensation similar to a spring.

  Cumming's US Pat. No. 5,674,282 is focused on implanting an IOL that is accommodation-controlled within the eye follicle. Cumming's IOL consists of a central optical lens and two plate-like haptics that extend radially outward from the opposite position of the optical lens and can move forward and backward relative to the optical lens. . However, Cumming's IOL suffers from the same drawbacks as Levy's IOL in that the sense of touch is biased forward by pressure from the ciliary body. This eventually leads to pressure necrosis of the ciliary body.

  Finally, Smith U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,601 discloses an IOL that is a accommodation type having an anterior and posterior members pressed against the anterior and posterior walls of the follicle. The movement of the muscles acting on the follicles flattens the IOL, thereby changing its focus. The Smith IOL is formed of first and second plastic lens components and is joined at the peripheral edges, thus providing a cavity between them. The lenses are coupled to each other by receiving a seating surface protruding outside the second member on a U-shaped seating surface that forms an inward groove of the first member. Smith's IOL is imperfect because the lens structure makes it very difficult for even a skilled surgeon to achieve the implant. In addition, Smith's IOL increases the risk of bleeding because it requires suturing.

  The IOL discussed above replaced the cloudy lens that was a sign of cataract through a small incision in the front wall of the iris and real eye follicles. The difference between the present invention and the IOL for the treatment of cataracts is that the present invention uses a highly refractive material to compensate for defects in the natural refractive medium of the eye, ie the cornea and the natural lens.

  The demand for lightweight IOL technology is very high and can be used to cure various refractive disorders that require replacement of the natural lens, such as cataracts, in conjunction with other eye defects. This IOL can be easily inserted into the eye follicle and must last for many years without compromising the eyeball components.

  The IOL of the present invention addresses this demand by providing a lightweight perspective IOL that incorporates a highly refractive medium that is safe for use in the eyeball for long periods of time. The present invention represents a significant advance in the art because it can provide an IOL for the safe and effective treatment of refractive disorders combined with other defects such as cataracts.

An artificial lens of the present invention comprises an implantable artificial lens comprising an optical lens made of a material, and a positioning component having an outer body and a plurality of spaced arms extending between the optical lens and the outer body. A crystalline lens, wherein the optical lens is disposed about an optical axis and includes a front surface and a rear surface, and the optical lens has a first optical lens shape and a second optical lens shape, The first optical lens shape is characterized by a first optical lens diameter and a first thickness, and the second optical lens shape is characterized by a second optical lens diameter and a second thickness. The second optical lens diameter is smaller than the first optical lens diameter, the second thickness is thicker than the first thickness, and the outer body of the positioning component is positioned on the optical axis. Parallel to the optical axis When viewed in a cross-section along the surface, and the outer body has a front portion positioned before the front surface of the optical lens and a rear surface of the optical lens. The optical lens is connected to the positioning component at a center position of the outer body in a direction along the optical axis, and corresponds to the movement of the ciliary body of the eye on which the artificial lens is placed When the arm of the positioning component moves toward the optical lens, perspective adjustment is performed by changing the shape of the optical lens from the first optical lens shape to the second optical lens shape. This is performed by changing the refractive index of the lens.
In another embodiment of the invention, the IOL includes an elastic optical lens made of a high refractive index material, which is responsible for ciliary movement, ie ciliary contraction (increased tension) and retraction. It is movably connected to a flexible optical lens positioning member that deforms accordingly. When the ciliary body is relaxed or retracts, it stretches the ciliary zonule and exerts tension on the IOL. This gives the IOL a disc shape that allows the viewer to focus on objects far away from it. Similarly, as the ciliary body contracts, it increases the thickness and relieves the pull that becomes the tension of the ciliary band. Thus the IOL shape becomes rotational ellipsoid shape, focus on objects that are close therefrom viewer can Awaru. As mentioned above, the optical lens is formed of a refractive material and its refractive index is about 1.36 to 1.5 or higher (eg, hydrocarbon oil, silicone oil, or silicone gel). In one type of IOL according to the present invention, there is a use of a capsule having a thin continuous wall that is pre-formed and encapsulated with a refractive material.

  Depending on the visual acuity of the user, the optical lens may be integrated with various optical lens positioning members generally used for IOL construction. The optical lens can be provided so that the front surface thereof faces either the front part or the rear part of the eyeball in the eye follicle. When the optical lens is provided so as to face the rear part of the eyeball, the optical lens curves backward corresponding to the contraction of the ciliary body. However, a change in the radius of curvature of the optical lens has the opposite effect of accommodation, i.e. cancels back movement of the optical lens. The elasticity of the optical lens allows a small change in the radius of curvature, which when combined with a relatively high refractive index material results in an optical lens that has the property of bending light more than conventional optical lenses.

  In another preferred embodiment, an elastic optical lens and a rear rigid optical lens are presented, both movably coupled to opposite sides of an optical lens positioning member that changes shape in response to ciliary movement. Has been. Both optical lenses are positioned so as to share the same focal point at opposite portions of the optical lens positioning member. In a similar embodiment, the structure just described is flipped, and the IOL is embedded in the eyeball so that the hard optical lens is the front optical lens and the elastic optical lens is the rear optical lens.

  In another embodiment of the invention, the two optical lenses are located in the same part of the optical lens positioning member, where the hard optical lens surrounds the elastic optical lens. In another embodiment, similar to the embodiment just described, two optical lenses are located in the same part of the optical lens positioning member, where an elastic optical lens surrounds the hard optical lens. In this embodiment, the elastic optical lens changes shape as the ciliary body moves, while the rigid optical lens essentially retains its shape.

  Yet another preferred IOL embodiment according to the present invention includes an optical lens positioning member comprised of a supple bag encapsulating an elastic filler therein. The sealed flexible bag presents a rear part opposite to the front part, and each has an optical lens. Since the optical lens positioning member is formed in advance so as to exhibit an opposing optical lens surface, the optical lens is integral with the optical lens positioning member. The elastic filler is composed of the same refractive material used in the construction of the elastic optical lens referred to above. This embodiment works equally well for the IOLs discussed above because the front optical lens surface moves forward and the rear optical lens moves backward in response to ciliary contraction. The optical lens surface of the optical lens positioning member of the supple bag has a slight change in the radius of curvature (for example, 5 to 4.6 mm) from perspective adjustment to non-adjustment, but the image seen when combined with high refractive power Allows the retina to accept.

  Another embodiment of the present invention is similar to the embodiment with opposing optical lenses described above, but the optical lens positioning member of this embodiment does not completely contain the refractive material. The refractive material of this IOL protrudes outward beyond the outer edge of the front part through the opening of the optical lens positioning member to form an elastic optical lens. The rear part of the optical lens positioning member supports a second rear rigid optical lens located on the opposite side of the elastic optical lens. The hard optical lens is constructed of the same material as the optical lens positioning member. The elastic material is kept confined to the portion of the optical lens positioning member, but is also in direct contact with the actual eye follicle. Ciliary contraction transfers sufficient force to the elastic and protruding refractive material, which in turn defines an optical lens that can change shape in response to ciliary movement. This embodiment may be constructed without the addition of a second opposing rigid optical lens depending on the identifiable surgical needs.

  Now, as will be described with reference to the drawings, the present invention treats a refractive error of the human eyeball by an IOL method in which the natural lens is replaced by a surgical operation. FIG. 1 illustrates various components of a human eyeball 10 that are relevant to the present invention. Roughly, the eyeball 10 includes a front portion 12 and a rear portion 14. The anterior portion 12 of the eyeball 10 is covered with a cornea 16 that surrounds and forms the anterior chamber 18. The anterior chamber 18 contains an aqueous liquid and is partitioned by an iris 20 at the rear. The iris 20 opens and closes and puts an appropriate amount of light into the eyeball 10. The eyeball 10 also includes an eye follicle 22, which contains a normally innate lens (located in the number 24 if intact and unmodified). The eyeball 10 includes a ciliary muscle or ciliary body 26 having zonule fibers 28 (sometimes called ciliary zonules) attached thereto. The vitreous humor 30 is behind the eye follicle 22 and in front of the retina (not shown). The vitreous humor 30 contains a transparent liquid.

  Most of the light entering the eyeball 10 is refracted at the air-corneal interface. The cornea 16 has a refractive index of 1.37 and is responsible for most of the light refracted into the eyeball 10. The light then spreads slightly in the anterior chamber 18 filled with a liquid having a refractive index close to water, for example about 1.33, and reaches the natural lens 24. The natural crystalline lens 24 has a biconvex structure with a refractive index of 1.4 at the center and 1.38 at the outer portion. Following the cornea 16, the natural lens 24 is responsible for much refraction of the light that enters the human eyeball 10. The front part of the natural crystalline lens 24 collects light at one point on its rear part, from which the light spreads. At this one point, the image seen is upside down. The inverted image (ie light) then enters the vitreous humor 30 and passes through the transparent liquid. The refractive index of a transparent liquid is close to water, for example 1.33. After the inverted image passes through the vitreous humor 30, it is focused on the retina. The retina is responsible for relaying electrical signals to the optic nerve. The optic nerve conveys the content of the transmission to the brain, and the image upside down is corrected to the upright position.

  The adjustment of the eye that focuses sharply on the object viewed at different distances is made by the movement of the natural lens 24 through the ciliary body 26 and ciliary band 28 on the follicle 22. As the ciliary body 26 contracts and the eye follicle 22 returns to a more spherical shape, an object closer to the viewer can be seen. When the ciliary body 26 retracts, the ciliary body 26 pulls the ciliary zonule 28 and makes the eye follicle 22 more disk-like, allowing distant objects to be seen at normal focus. (FIG. 1) In summary, when the eyeball 10 is in focus, the follicle 22 changes shape to properly distribute the light through the cornea 16 and iris 20.

  Next, referring to FIGS. 1-22, the IOL according to the present invention is composed of an optical lens 32 movably connected to an optical lens positioning member embedded in the eye follicle 22 of the human eyeball 10. The IOL changes shape according to the movement of the ciliary body 26. As mentioned above, the optical lens 32 according to the present invention is made of a highly refractive material. The refractive material has a refractive index of about 1.36 to 1.5 or more. Preferred refractive materials include silicone oil, hydrocarbon oil, and more preferred silicone gel (available from Nusil Technology). When the refractive material used is a gel, the gel can be formed in the shape of a desired optical lens in advance and adhered to the optical lens positioning member without enclosing it.

  The optical lens 32 can be utilized in several ways among the various optical lens positioning members. The optical lens positioning members discussed herein are preferably suitably biologically inert (e.g., elastic synthetic resin materials) that are typically used in IOL construction. Suitable materials include acrylates (such as polymethylmethacrylate), silicon, and mixtures of acrylates and silicon. Mixtures of silicons and acrylates have been considered, including both chemical mixtures, such as silicon-acrylate blends, and numerous combinations of silicons and acrylates have been used to construct the lens. The optical lens positioning member according to the present invention is made of a material having elastic memory (shape memory, that is, the material has the ability to be restored to its original size and shape after the deformation force is removed). Is particularly desirable. An example of a preferred material with elastic memory is MEMORYLENS (available from Mentor Ophthalmics, California).

  The preferred embodiments of the instant invention discussed immediately below describe various optical lens positioning members that may be movably combined with an original optical lens that corrects refractive errors in the eyeball. Here, the terms rigid optical lens and elastic optical lens are used as terms relative to each other. For example, a hard optical lens can be any optical lens that is less elastic than the elastic optical lens of the present invention, even if the hard optical lens is more elastic than the other hard optical lenses. The optical lens according to the present invention may be made with different elasticity and hardness depending on the material used, so the terms rigid and elastic are specific relationships between two optical lenses within the scope of the present invention. It should not be used as a limiting term except to convey.

<IOL of FIGS. 1-3 [IOL61]>
The optical lens 32 has a convex surface 36 on the front surface and a flat surface 38 on the rear surface (hereinafter referred to as a flat-convex surface). Although the optical lens 32 is illustrated as a plano-convex surface, the size and shape of the optical lens 32 may vary depending on the visual acuity of the user. The optical lens 32 is composed of a refractive material 40, which is encapsulated in a capsule 42 formed in advance by a thin continuous wall 43 made of the same flexible synthetic resin material as the optical lens positioning member 34. Each thin wall 43 has a front portion 33 facing the front portion 12 of the eyeball 10 and a rear portion 41 facing the rear portion 14. (See FIG. 2) The thickness of the forward portion 33 of the thin wall 43 is about 0.0005 to 0.025 mm, and more preferably 0.0004 mm when the material used is silicon. The thickness of the rear portion 41 of the thin wall 43 is about 0.0005 to 0.025 mm, and more preferably 0.003 mm when the material used is silicon. One skilled in the art will recognize that the front portion 33 and the rear portion 41 of the thin wall 43 are also constructed with the same thickness. The optical lens 32 may be constructed without housing the refractive material in a pre-formed capsule 42 if the refractive material used is the silicon gel material discussed above. (See Figure 16)

  The optical lens positioning member 34 may be integrated with the optical lens, or may be structurally separate. As illustrated, the optical lens positioning member 34 comprises a body 35 that includes an annular rear portion 44 with a central opening 46 and a front portion 37. The front portion 37 and the rear portion 44 are located on both sides of the equator shaft 56. A plurality of circumferentially spaced positioning legs 48 having an arcuate cross section extend from portion 44 with gaps 50 defined as between a pair of adjacent legs 48, and Connected to the edge. Although perhaps best seen in FIG. 2, the legs 48 cooperate with the optical lens 32 to form a substantially disk-like shape with the central tuft 52. However, leg 48 also defines an annular equator portion 54 disposed on either side of equator axis 56. (See FIG. 2) The central original line 58 is shown as further illustrated as an IOL 61 overall. The outer dimension of the IOL 61 at the equator portion 48 is preferably about 8 to 12 mm. On the other hand, the outer dimension along the original line 58 is generally about 1 to 5 mm. However, these dimensions given immediately above are representative of typical dimensions within the scope of the present invention. The dimensions of the IOL according to the present invention inevitably vary over a wide range since biological variations exist to a large extent. Obviously, the dimensions of the IOL according to the present invention must match the size and shape of the eyeball to be fitted. This will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

  The optical lens positioning member 34 discussed herein is made to substantially coincide with the eye follicle 22, particularly the equator portion 27 of the eye follicle 22. This is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, where the equator portion 54 of the IOL 61 is in contact with the inner surface of the equator portion 27 of the eyeball 22 so as to substantially coincide. This close relationship is maintained even within the range of perspective adjustment of the IOL 61.

  The IOL 61 is inserted into the human eyeball 10 as follows. The ophthalmologist removes the natural lens 24 leaving the opening 21 in the front wall 23 of the eye follicle 22 in the usual manner. The IOL 61 is then folded down for insertion into the eye follicle 22 through the opening 21. Once inserted, the eye follicle 22 is filled with a liquid (eg, saline) that enters the IOL 61, returning the IOL 61 to its original, undeformed state as shown in FIG. Due to the size and shape of the IOL 61 and the consistency between the IOL 61 and the eye follicle 22, the IOL 61 does not rotate or shift within the eye follicle 22.

  Optionally, the IOL 61 may be provided with a protective and very thin membrane (not shown), which is disclosed in US patent application S / N09 / 940018 filed Aug. 27, 2001. And this specification. The film may be formed of the same synthetic resin as the optical lens positioning member 34, but is much thinner (on the order of several thousandths of an inch) than the remaining optical lens positioning members 34. The purpose of the membrane is to prevent, or at least prevent, migrating cells from migrating through the opening of the IOL 61 into the IOL 61 inner chamber.

  Further, regarding the construction of the optical lens positioning member 34, the same applicant previously entitled US Patent Application No. ___ entitled “Embedding the accommodation lens” and “Embedding the artificial lens with accommodation function of the eyeball”. US patent application Ser. No. 09/940018 has been filed and is incorporated herein by reference as it is necessary for an overall and complete understanding of the invention.

  By embedding the original IOL 61, an optical lens 32 formed of a highly refractive material capable of bending light on the retina is provided, and normal vision is restored. After the IOL 61 is embedded in the human eyeball 10, the light is refracted at the air-cornea interface in a manner similar to the natural human eyeball 10. The light travels through the anterior chamber 18 filled with liquid to the optical lens 32. The radius of curvature of the optical lens 32 changes corresponding to the movement of the ciliary body 26, thereby affecting the refractive performance of the optical lens 32.

  The IOL 61 not only projects the sighted image on the retina, but also adjusts the perspective according to the movement of the ciliary body 26 in conjunction with the ciliary zonule 28, so that the viewer can see objects in both the perspective and the perspective. . When the viewer is looking at a distant image, the sensory cells in the retina are signaled to relax to the ciliary body 26, thereby pulling the ciliary band 28 and the eye follicle 22 shown in FIG. Make a disk shape. By doing so, the original dimension of the eye follicle 22 is narrowed, and subsequently the original dimension of the IOL 61 is similarly reduced. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the optical lens positioning member 34 is movably coupled to the optical lens 32 according to the present invention and thus changes shape in response to movement of the ciliary body 26. In this connection, the movement of the ciliary body 26 causes the optical lens 32 to move backward and forward, respectively. The contraction of the ciliary body 26 and the subsequent relaxation of the ciliary band 28 curve the optical lens 32 forward.

The IOL 61 according to the present invention generally has a diopter value of about 16-26. The diopter of a lens is defined as the reciprocal of the focal length measured in meters.
Diopter = 1 / focal length (m)
The focal length is the distance from the center of the lens to the object being viewed. As the magnification increases, the focal length must decrease. The diopter value expresses the refractive capacity of the lens related to the radius of curvature of the optical lens. In general, an increase in the diopter value indicates that the optical lens is thicker and has a smaller radius of curvature, resulting in a characteristic of bending light.

<IOL [IOL60] in FIG. 4>
The IOL 60 is similar to the IOL 61 illustrated in FIGS. The IOL 60 includes an optical lens positioning member 62 where the optical lens positioning member 62 presents a front portion 66 and a rear portion 68 having central openings 67, 69, respectively. A plurality of positioning legs 64 having an arcuate cross section, which are individually arranged continuously and spaced apart from each other, have gaps 71 defined between a pair of adjacent legs 64. And extending from the front portion 66 and connected to the edge of the optical lens 32 by a tactile arm 72. The haptic arm 72 extends between the rear portion 68 and the edge of the optical lens 32. The tactile arm 72 connects the optical lens 32 and the optical lens positioning member 62. This embodiment is similar to IOL61 in the sense that it can also be constructed with thin films disclosed in US patent application specification S / N09 / 940018 filed Aug. 27, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference. .

  In this embodiment, it is important that the posterior portion 68 of the optical lens positioning member 62 is not fixed with respect to the posterior portion of the eye follicle 22. This is not the case if the rear portion 68 is continuously connected to the positioning leg 64. On the other hand, although not shown in the drawing, the front portion 66 may be continuously connected with an annular tactile sense. The IOL 60 is embedded and acts like the IOL 61. The IOL 60 of the present invention typically has a diopter value of about 16 to 26.

  Further, regarding the construction of the optical lens positioning member 62, the same applicant previously entitled US Patent No. ___ entitled “Embedded Perspective Artificial Lens” and “Embedded Artificial Lens with Perspective Adjustment Function of Eyeball”. US patent application Ser. No. 09/940018 has been filed and is incorporated herein by reference as it is necessary for an overall and complete understanding of the invention.

<IOL [IOL60a] according to FIG. 5>
FIG. 5 shows a preferred IOL 60a according to the present invention. Similar to the embodiment of IOL 60 described above, this IOL 60a includes an optical lens 32 and an optical lens positioning member 74 that presents a front portion 66a and a rear portion 68a. A plurality of positioning legs 76 having an arcuate cross section arranged at intervals on the circumference extend from the front portion 66 a to the optical lens 32. The tactile arm 72a extends from the front portion 66a to the optical lens 32 backward. In a further preferred embodiment of the IOL 60a, the optical lens 32 may be connected to the optical lens positioning member 74 by a plurality of haptic arms (not shown). The plurality of tactile folds are arranged at various positions near the front portion 66a and extend rearward in the direction of the optical lens 32. The plurality of leg portions 76 are continuously connected to each other via a continuous portion 80 having an annular opening 82 at the center. This embodiment is similar to IOLs 61 and 60 in the sense that it can also be constructed with thin membranes disclosed in US patent application specification S / N09 / 940018 filed Aug. 27, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference. ing.

  IOL 60a is implanted and acts in the same manner as IOLs 61 and 60. The IOL 60a of the present invention typically has a diopter value of about 16 to 26. Further, regarding the construction of the optical lens positioning member 74, the same applicant previously entitled US Patent Application No. ___ entitled “Embedding the accommodation lens” and “Embedding the artificial lens with accommodation function of the eyeball”. US patent application Ser. No. 09/940018 has been filed and is incorporated herein by reference as it is necessary for an overall and complete understanding of the invention.

<IOL [IOL60b] according to FIG. 6>
FIG. 6 shows yet another preferred IOL 60b according to the present invention. The IOL 60b also includes an optical lens 32 and an optical lens positioning member 84 that presents a front portion 66b and a rear portion 68b. The optical lens positioning member 84 further includes a gap portion 86 that is spaced apart on the circumference and defined as a pair of adjacent leg portions 88 with a plurality of positioning leg portions 88 having an arcuate cross section. In short, the IOL 60b has almost the same configuration as the IOL 60 except that a plurality of tactile arms 72b extend from the equator portion 54 to the optical lens 32. When the IOL 60b is in its original, uncompressed state, the haptic rod 72b is slightly curved toward the front portion 66b.

  This embodiment can also be constructed with thin films disclosed in US patent specification S / N09 / 940018 filed Aug. 27, 2001, which is incorporated herein by reference, in the sense that IOLs 61, 60, and 60a. It's similar to.

  IOL 60b is embedded and acts in the same manner as IOLs 61, 60 and 60a. The IOL 60b of the present invention typically has a diopter value of about 16 to 26. Further, regarding the construction of the optical lens positioning member 84, the same applicant previously entitled US Patent Application No. ___ entitled “Embedding the accommodation lens” and “Embedding the artificial lens with accommodation function of the eyeball”. US patent application Ser. No. 09/940018 has been filed and is incorporated herein by reference as it is necessary for an overall and complete understanding of the invention.

<IOL [IOL61d] in FIGS. 7 and 8>
The IOL 61d is another embodiment of the present invention. The IOL 61d exhibits a variation of the IOL 61. Here, the optical lens 32 is fixed to the front surface 31 (a) or the rear surface 31 (b) of the optical lens positioning member 34. The IOL 61d operates similarly to the IOL 61 and is embedded.

  In particular, the IOL 61 d illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 includes a liquid refractive material 40 encapsulated within a capsule 42. The refractive index of the wall 43 and refractive material 40 can be varied to meet surgical, medical, or manufacturing needs.

<IOL [IOL61a] in FIGS. 9 and 10>
Unlike the embodiments discussed so far, the IOL 61a is movably connected to the front portion 37 of the optical lens positioning member while the optical lens 32 is movably connected to the rear portion 44. It is linked to. The optical lenses 32 and 90 are disposed on the opposing portions 37 and 44 of the optical lens positioning member so that the same shares the same optical axis. In this context, in this context, opposite or opposite is consistently located on the opposite side of the equatorial axis 56 (a), both optical lenses share substantially the same optical axis, and the IOL is distorted. It means that they are lined up in a row so as to give them visual acuity. Although the rear optical lens 90 is made of the same material as the optical lens positioning member 34, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the rear optical lens 90 can be constructed of a unique elastic material as well.

  This embodiment is embedded and operates essentially the same as the IOL discussed so far, except that it includes a second opposing rigid optical lens 90. The front optical lens 32 condenses the light on the rear optical lens 90. The rear optical lens 90 then diverges light into the retina. Any abnormalities in the cornea 16 or innate lens 24 are tempered by the highly refractive material 102 so that the image is focused on the retina. This embodiment also adjusts as the ciliary body 26 moves. When the ciliary body 26 contracts, the IOL 61a has a rotating circular shape. The front optical lens 32 moves forward, while the rear optical lens 90 moves backward. When the ciliary body 26 retracts, the ciliary band 28 applies a pulling force to the IOL to change the IOL into a disk shape. While the front optical lens 32 moves backward, the rear optical lens 90 moves forward. The IOL 61a of the present invention generally has a diopter value of 16 to 26.

  As illustrated in FIG. 10, the IOL 61 a may be arranged such that the hard optical lens 90 is located in the front of the eyeball and the optical lens 32 is located in the rear. When the IOL 61a is placed in this manner in the eyeball, the IOL 61a has a combined combined refraction of about 16 to 26 diopters.

<IOL [IOL92] in FIGS. 11 to 15>
Another preferred embodiment according to the present invention is that the front optical lens 94a and the rear are integrated with an optical lens positioning member 98 such that the IOL 92 is a unitary structure for implantation into the eyeball 22 of the human eyeball 10. An optical lens surface 96a is included. (See FIG. 11) The IOL 92 is formed in advance, and is composed of a main body that presents a supple bag 100 in which an elastic filling material 102 (a) is enclosed. Further, the flexible bag 100 formed and sealed in advance may be filled with another refractive material disclosed herein. The compliant bag 100 is composed of a front portion 104 and a rear portion 106. The compliant bag further includes a wall 112 which, when viewed in cross-section, extends radially from the front arched wall portion 94 and concentrates on the rear portion 106 of the IOL 92 to the opposite rear arch shape. A wall portion 96 is formed. Opposing arched wall portions 94, 96 define opposing front and rear optical lens surfaces 94a, 96a when the enclosed compliant bag 100 cavity 114 is filled with material 102 (a). . Here, the term “surface of the optical lens” is used to represent the surfaces 94a and 96a, but these surfaces 94a and 96a function as optical lenses functionally. Accordingly, the term optical lens may also be used interchangeably with optical lens surfaces 94a, 96a in the remainder of this disclosure.

  The front optical lens surface 94a and the rear optical lens surface 96a have a combined radius of curvature of about 16 to 26 diopters. (See FIG. 11) Both the front optical lens surface 94a and the rear optical lens surface 96a are illustrated in a convex shape. When viewed in cross-section, the front portion 94 and the rear portion 96 are joined by a pair of opposing arched equator portions 124a as shown in FIG.

  The wall 112 includes a filling hole 118 and a plug that closes the hole 118. Although hole 118 is depicted at position 120 of IOL 92, hole 118 can be provided at any position in IOL 92. The equator outer diameter of the IOL 92 (the distance of the IOL 92 obtained along the equator axis 124) is preferably about 8 to 12 mm. (See FIG. 13) The IOL preferably has an outer dimension of about 2 to 5 mm along the central original line 122. (See Figure 13)

  Prior to the operation of implanting the IOL 92 in the human eyeball 10, the ophthalmologist fills the cavity 114 with the material 102 (a) by inserting the material 102 (a) through the hole 118. After the cavity 114 is filled, the hole 118 is sealed. The ophthalmologist removes the natural crystalline lens in a conventional manner leaving an opening in the front wall 23 (a) of the eye follicle 22. The IOL 92 is folded and inserted through the opening into the eye follicle. The implantation of the IOL 92 does not require suturing the eyeball 10 because it can be implanted through a small opening in the eyeball 22.

  Since IOL 92 includes opposing optical lens surfaces 94, 96, it operates in the same manner as IOL 61a. The front optical lens 94 causes the light to converge on the rear optical lens surface 96, which then diverges the light into the retina. The IOL 92 takes the shape of a rotating circle corresponding to the contraction of the ciliary body 26.

<IOL [IOL61] in FIG. 16>
FIG. 16 illustrates an inventive IOL 61 optical lens 32 formed of an elastic silicon gel material. Accordingly, the IOL 61 of FIG. 16 does not depict a refractive material encapsulated within a preformed capsule 42 having a thin continuous wall 43. Capsule 42 is not necessary if the refractive material is formed of an elastic shape-retaining synthetic material, such as the silicon gel discussed above.

<IOL [IOL61c] in FIG. 17>
Another preferred embodiment of the present invention includes an optical lens positioning member 34 movably integrated with two optical lenses 142, 144 that change shape in response to movement of the ciliary body 26. The IOL 61 c includes an elastic optical lens 142 surrounded by a hard optical lens 144. The elasto-optic lens 142 is formed of a refractive material as discussed above. The hard optical lens 144 is made of the same material as the optical lens positioning member 34. Both optical lenses 142, 144 are housed in the preformed capsule 42 described with respect to the IOL 61.

  The IOL 61c operates in a manner similar to the embodiments discussed so far, but the elastic optical lens 142 surrounded by the rigid optical lens 144 maintains a constant volume with respect to the ciliary body 26 movement. It is different. A combination of the constant volume of the elastic optical lens 142 and the relatively high refractive index of the refractive material contained therein gives the elastic optical lens 142 the characteristic of bending the enhanced light.

<IOL [IOL200] in FIGS. 18 and 19>
Another preferred embodiment is an IOL 200 having an annular optical lens positioning member 210 that exhibits a far-off arcuate front portion 212 and a rear portion 214. The IOL 200 further includes a front elastic optical lens 216 and a rear rigid optical lens 218 that are movably coupled to the optical lens positioning member 210 and change shape in response to movement of the ciliary body 26.

  The front portion 212 of the optical lens positioning member 210 includes an opening 220 that is approximately 7 to 3 mm, more preferably 4 mm wide. The front portion 212 further includes an outer edge 222 and an inner edge 224. The outer edge 222 can be defined as the front portion of the front portion 212 or the portion of the portion 212 closest to the iris 20. The rear portion 214 also includes an inner edge 226 and an outer edge 228, and the inner edge 226 of the rear portion 214 is also the edge closest to the iris 20. The gap between the front portion 212 and the rear portion 214 is occupied by the refractive material so that the refractive material is close to the inner edges 224, 226 of the portions 212, 214. The refractive material protrudes out of the outer edge 222 of the front portion 212. This protrusion defines the elastic optical lens 216. The refractive material used here is the refractive silicon gel discussed above. The silicon gel refractive material may be preformed into a desired shape and stretched over the portions 212, 214 of the optical lens positioning member 210. The refractive material may also be contained in a sac that is similarly connected to the portions 212, 214. In this case, the refractive material used may be a liquid.

  The IOL 200 may further include a second hard optical lens 218 that faces the elastic optical lens 216. The hard optical lens 218 is made of the same material as the optical lens positioning member 210 and is supported by the rear portion 214. As described above, the gap between the portions 212 and 214 is occupied by a refractive material. In this IOL 200, in addition to the protrusion that defines the optical lens 216 extending beyond the outer edge 222 of the front portion 212, the refractive material is not completely contained in the optical lens positioning member 210, so far. Different from the other embodiments discussed. The refractive material is positioned between the two portions 212, 214 such that the refractive material is in direct contact at the location of the biological eyeballs 22 and 230.

  Once assembled, the IOL 200 is embedded in the same manner as the IOL 61 and operates in a manner similar to other IOLs with opposing optical lenses discussed herein. The contraction of the ciliary body 26 and the subsequent relaxation of the ciliary band 28 exerts a force on the refractive material, causing the material to jump out beyond the outer edge 222 of the front portion 212. When the ciliary body 26 is retracted, the ciliary band 28 pulls on the eye follicle 22, and the refractive material takes a flatter shape and objects far away can be seen.

<IOL [IOL61b] in FIGS. 20 and 21>
The IOL 61b illustrated in FIGS. 20 and 21 further illustrates another preferred embodiment according to the present invention. FIGS. 20 and 21 illustrate all the IOLs of FIGS. 1-8 and 16 discussed above, wherein the optical lens 32 is positioned in the eyeball 10 so as to be located rearward. 20 and 21 illustrate longitudinal sections of all of the IOLs of FIGS. 1-8 and 16 to those skilled in the art, any of the IOLs of the present invention can be positioned so that the front optical lens faces backwards. You will understand that soon. FIG. 20 illustrates the manner in which the IOL of the present invention is adjusting. FIG. 21 illustrates the unregulated form of the IOL of the present invention.

<IOL in FIG. 22 [IOL61e]>
The IOL 61e illustrated in FIG. 22 is similar to the IOL 61c illustrated in FIG. The IOL 61e differs from the IOL 61c in that the elastic optical lens 142a surrounds the hard optical lens 144a. In FIG. 22, the IOL 61 e is illustrated behind the eye follicle 22 of the eyeball 10. In response to the movement of the ciliary body 26, the elastic optical lens 142a changes its shape. The change in curvature of the elastic optical lens 142a provides about 3 diopters of light collection, while the hard optical lens 144a essentially retains its shape.

<IOL [IOL146] in FIGS. 23 to 26>
Figures 23-26 further depict another IOL 146 according to the present invention. The IOL 146 includes an optical lens 148 and an optical lens positioning component 150. The optical lens positioning component 150 includes a plurality of haptic arms 152 spaced apart on the circumference. Further, a plurality of positioning legs 154 having an interval on the circumference and having an arched cross section are connected to the optical lens via the arm 152 at the curved portion 156, whereby the arm 152 and the optical lens 148 are connected to the crystalline lens. Located substantially in the plane made of the equator. Legs 154 extend forward and backward in a curved manner to form respective forward and rear portions 155 and 157 and connect to annular portions 158 and 160 on either side of IOL 146. In the illustrated embodiment, the annular portion 158 is located in front of the optical lens 148, while the annular portion 160 is located behind the optical lens 148. The illustrated IOL 146 further includes an optional opening 162 that is included to assist in positioning the IOL 146 within the eye follicle or to allow fluid on both sides of the optical lens 148 to communicate.

  This embodiment is similar to IOLs 60 and 61 in that a very thin membrane may be provided between the legs 154, which is the US patent application S / N09 filed Aug. 27, 2001. / 940018, which is incorporated herein by reference. Also, rather than being joined at the annular portions 158, 160, the legs 154 may stand on their own without support as shown in the embodiment of FIG. The legs may be connected only at the front of the IOL 146, only at the back of the IOL 146, or not on either side of the IOL 146. The optical lens 148 has a weak convex shape, but optical lenses having other shapes can be used in the same manner.

  In use, the IOL 146 is implanted as discussed in the previous embodiment. Further, the IOL 146 achieves accommodation by the same mechanism discussed above. That is, since the optical lens 148 is formed of a supple and elastic material, and the arm portion 152 and the leg portion 154 are formed of a material that is harder or less elastic than the optical lens 148, the ciliary body 26 contracts when the ciliary body 26 contracts. This is because the zonule 28 is relaxed and allows the IOL 146 to have a more rotationally circular shape. This moves the arm 152 towards the optical lens 148, which then reduces the diameter of the optical lens 148 while increasing the thickness of the optical lens 148, as shown in FIG. In this way, accommodation is achieved.

  Although the invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, equivalents may be used or substituted without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. That should be mentioned. For example, all of the IOLs of the present invention can be constructed in an unadjusted or an adjusted form. Also, although the above-described method of inserting an IOL into the eye follicle 22 assumes that a portion of the front wall 54 of the follicle 22 is removed along with the natural lens, an incision in the rear wall 53 of the eye follicle 22 It would be useful to be able to insert through. Furthermore, while the previous description discloses that the IOL can be used to correct refractive errors, the IOL could be used in all cases where the natural lens 24 needs to be replaced. For example, an IOL could be used to correct myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia, cataracts or a combination thereof. The IOL cavity 114 could be filled using various refractive media depending on the desired refractive index. Furthermore, the optical lens in each embodiment could be formed from a wide range of supple refractive materials. These include gels, silicon, silicon mixtures, refractive liquids, elastomeric materials, rubbers, acrylates, and mixtures of the foregoing as long as the material is supple and elastic.

In the longitudinal section showing the IOL in the follicle according to the invention, the eyeball is focused on an object far from the viewer. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a preferred IOL according to the present invention. 3 is a front perspective view of the IOL of FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. Fig. 4 illustrates another embodiment according to the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates another embodiment according to the present invention. Fig. 4 illustrates another embodiment according to the present invention. 3 shows that the optical lens is affixed to the front surface of the front portion of the IOL according to the present invention. 3 shows that the optical lens is affixed to the rear surface of the rear portion of the IOL according to the present invention. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of another embodiment according to the present invention, with the optical lens located at the front portion of the IOL and the rear rigid optical lens at the rear portion of the IOL. FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view of the IOL in FIG. 9 positioned in the eyeball, with the optical lens positioned in the rear portion of the IOL and the hard optical lens positioned in the front portion of the IOL. In a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the preferred IOL according to the present invention, the eyeball is focused on an object far from the viewer. FIG. 12 is a view similar to FIG. 11 but illustrating the state where the IOL is in a position adjusted by contraction of the ciliary body. FIG. 2 is a plan view of a preferred IOL according to the present invention. FIG. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 14-14 in FIG. 13. FIG. 15 is a partially enlarged view of the IOL portion of FIGS. FIG. 11 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view similar to FIGS. 7-10, but illustrating an optical lens constructed without an encapsulating capsule. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of another embodiment according to the present invention illustrating an elastic optical lens surrounded by a hard optical lens. In a longitudinal section of another embodiment according to the present invention, the IOL according to the present invention is in the optic follicle and the eyeball is focused on an object far from the viewer. FIG. 19 is a view similar to FIG. 18, but illustrating the state where the IOL is in a position adjusted by contraction of the ciliary muscle. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an IOL according to the present invention in an eye follicle, with an optical lens positioned rearward. FIG. 21 is a view similar to FIG. 20, but illustrating the state where the IOL is not adjusted by retraction of the ciliary muscle. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of another embodiment of an IOL according to the present invention located in the eye follicle. In a longitudinal section of another IOL according to the present invention, the IOL is in the eye follicle and the eyeball is focused on an object that is far from the viewer. FIG. 24 is a view similar to FIG. 23 but illustrating the state where the IOL is in a position adjusted by contraction of the ciliary body. FIG. 25 is a plan view of the IOL of FIGS. FIG. 26 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line 26-26 in FIG. 25.

Claims (15)

An optical lens made of material ;
A positioning component having arms plurality of spaced apart extending between the outer body and said optical lens and said outer body, a implantable artificial lens comprises,
The optical lens is disposed about an optical axis and includes a front surface and a rear surface;
The optical lens has a first optical lens shape and a second optical lens shape, and the first optical lens shape is characterized by a first optical lens diameter and a first thickness, The second optical lens shape is characterized by a second optical lens diameter and a second thickness, wherein the second optical lens diameter is smaller than the first optical lens diameter and the second thickness. Is thicker than the first thickness,
The outer body of the positioning component is arcuate when viewed in a cross-section along a plane parallel to and passing through the optical axis;
In addition, the outer body includes a front portion placed before the front surface of the optical lens and a rear portion placed after the rear surface of the optical lens,
The optical lens is connected to the positioning component at a center position of the outer body in a direction along the optical axis,
When the arm of the positioning component moves toward the optical lens in response to the movement of the ciliary body of the eye on which the artificial lens is placed, perspective adjustment is performed from the first optical lens shape to the second. An artificial crystalline lens, which is formed by a change in the refractive index of the optical lens due to a change in the shape of the optical lens to the shape of the optical lens . When the optical lens has the first optical lens shape and the optical lens has the second optical lens shape, the arm is radially between the optical lens and the outer body when the optical lens has the second optical lens shape. The artificial lens according to claim 1 that extends. The front part intersects a first plane perpendicular to the central original line, the rear part intersects a second plane perpendicular to the central original line, and the optical lens has the first optical lens shape. The artificial lens according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the entire optical lens is disposed between the first plane and the second plane when held and when the optical lens has a second optical lens shape. Lens. The artificial lens is which are arranged on either side of the artificial lens surface that substantially bisects the optical lens, and the positioning component such that the optical lens is positioned substantially along a said intraocular lens surface The artificial crystalline lens according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is connected . The outer body, artificial lens according to claim 1 having legs plurality of spaced apart configured to engage the optic vesicle. The positioning component is further artificial lens according to claim 5 having the arms plurality of spaced apart radially extending the legs open the gap from the optical lens. The legs cross is arch-shaped, includes a curved portion, artificial claim 6 wherein each of the front Kiude are joined with the corresponding one with the curved portion of the open legs of the gap Lens. The outer body is arranged around the optical lens in a circumferential direction, and the outer body is arranged around the optical axis and has a central opening including the optical axis. The artificial crystalline lens according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a central opening is in front of the front surface of the optical lens. The optical lens is substantially the between the front portion and the rear portion of the outer body, and according to claim 1 which is held to be confined by the front portion and the rear portion Artificial lens. The artificial lens is an artificial lens according to claim 1 having the equatorial diameter of 8 mm to 12 mm. The artificial lens is an artificial lens according to claim 1 having a very high of 2 mm to 5 mm. The artificial lens is an artificial lens according to any one of claims 1 to 11 having a diopter value of 16 to 26. The artificial lens according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the outer body defines an equator portion, and the front portion and the rear portion of the outer body are radially arranged inward from the equator portion. The artificial lens according to claim 1, wherein the optical lens includes a liquid material or a gel material. The artificial lens according to claim 14, wherein the liquid material or the gel material is enclosed in a capsule formed of a thin continuous wall.

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