Fate of the capsular bag in endocapsular phacoemulsification and complete in-the-bag intraocular lens fixation.

We performed endocapsular phacoemulsification on 17 eyes of 15 patients between November 1984 and February 1985. Phacoemulsification was performed intracapsularly through a small incision in the anterior capsule. The inner wall of the bag was cleaned with the Cavitron handpiece. Posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation was performed completely in the bag. A clear capsular bag was present in 15 eyes with an average follow-up of six months. Central anterior lens capsule opacity occurred in two eyes. Sixteen eyes had visual acuity better than 20/40 and nine eyes had visual acuity better than 20/20. We have changed the name of this procedure from intracapsular to endocapsular phacoemulsification to prevent confusion.