Rationale: Anterior chamber intraocular lens (ACIOL) remains a surgical option for visual rehabilitation during complicated cataract surgeries with minimal or no capsular support. ACIOL causing scleral perforation is rare, and the involved causes remain debatable.
Patient concerns: Here, we present the case of a 62-year-old female with spontaneous protrusion of an angle-supported ACIOL haptic tip through an extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE) wound, who presented with progressive right-eye ptosis and right-side headache.
Diagnosis: The slit lamp examination showed a vertically aligned angle-supported Kelman Multiflex ACIOL in the anterior chamber. The ACIOL had deviated upward, with upper haptic protruding from the previous ECCE scleral tunnel wound. Fundus examination and optical coherence tomography (OCT) revealed cystoid macular edema (CME) with mild epiretinal membrane (ERM).
Interventions: The patient was treated with ACIOL extraction, pars plana vitrectomy, ERM peeling, and scleral-fixated posterior chamber IOL implantation.
Outcomes: Three months after surgery, the best-corrected visual acuity in the right eye improved to 20/80 and the right-side headache and hyperemia of the conjunctiva had significantly subsided. Repeated OCT revealed improved CME.
Lessons: Poor construction of the scleral tunnel incision may cause wound dehiscence. The vertically aligned ACIOL haptic tip resting at the angle may exert stress toward the dehiscent wound, exacerbating tissue erosion and causing scleral perforation with haptic tip exposure.