Rescue of an extending capsulorrhexis by creating a midway tangential anterior capsular flap: a novel technique in 22 eyes.

OBJECTIVE To show how an extending capsulorrhexis can be rescued by a midway tangential capsular flap in order to achieve an uneventful phacoemulsification. DESIGN Consecutive case series. PARTICIPANTS Twenty-two eyes of 22 patients with extending capsulorrhexis treated at the Farabi Eye Hospital, Tehran. METHODS First, a tangential capsular opening was created on the border of the presumed continuous curvilinear capsulorrhexis just midway between the beginning of the capsulorrhexis and the edge of the extending capsulorrhexis, to make a tangential flap of the anterior capsule. Second, the centre of this new flap was grasped and pulled centripetally until the edges of the new flap joined the edges of the extending flap to complete the capsulorrhexis. RESULTS The technique was successfully performed in all cases, leading to an uneventful phacoemulsification. CONCLUSIONS Midway tangential capsular flap is a safe and effective technique to rescue an extending capsulorrhexis and leads to an uneventful phacoemulsification.