Blue blocking IOLs are not the best option

Ultraviolet (UV) and violet blocking intraocular lenses (IOLs) can provide protection from radiation and offer good quality of vision, however, blocking blue light can actually cause a loss in quality of vision, according to Alessandro Franchini and Eleonora Vaccari from the University of Florence, Italy.

The study, which aimed to compare three different IOL filters, was conducted using a dedicated software and a pseudophakic eye model. The eye CIE day and night curves were computed through three different filters: the first blocks UV wavelights from 300 to 400 nm, the second blocks UV and violet (400 to 440 nm) wavelights (UVV) and the third blocks UV, violet and 50% of blue light at 450 nm and 25% at 480 nm (UVVB).

The investigators found that there were negligible differences between the three filters in day curves. In scotopic conditions, the UV filter guaranteed an integral of efficiency of 23.7 (100%), the UVV filter of 23.31 (97%) and the UVVB of 21.49 (90%).

According to Dr Franchini and Dr Vaccari, there is no proof that blocking blue light can guarantee further retinal protection and, given that it can actually cause a reduction in quality of vision, the authors conclude that UV and violet light blocking IOLs offer the best solution.