The chopper can do so much more than just divide the nucleus into pieces. The chopper can fixate the eye, manipulate tissue, bring cataract pieces to the tip, and dial an IOL into the bag. It can also serve as a way of protecting the posterior capsule by preventing touch of the capsule to the phaco probe even if fluidic surge occurs.
In the brief video presented here, we show a complete cataract case and you can see how often the chopper is used for maneuvers other than chopping. As you become more experienced as a surgeon, you’ll find that you will use fewer instruments in your surgery. My surgical tray has just a few instruments and that is sufficient for 99% of surgeries.
Click below to see the video of how I use the chopper to protect the capsular bag:
Would like to know if this chopper is optimal for vertical chopping on a very dense nucleus. Some choppers eg:Chang are sharper for this purpose. Also, is this an ideal chopper for horizontal chopping (as compared to a Nagahara style?)
For a dense rock, a sharper chopper makes it easier to penetrate the nucleus. For me, this chopper is good for all cases since it’s technique over instrumentation.