Three-piece IOL: B versus C cartridge

There are two options for injecting an Alcon three-piece IOL using the Monarch injector: the B cartridge is bigger and is the recommended one. However the C cartridge which is more compact, can also be used, however with a different loading technique.

The B cartridge has a special peg which is designed to hold the trailing haptic out of the way. The B cartridge requires that the phaco incision be enlarged to 3.0 mm for easy IOL insertion.

The C cartridge does not have this peg to hold the haptic, so instead we place this trailing haptic just outside the injector while we advance the plunger. This C cartridge will allow IOL insertion through our un-enlarged 2.75 mm phaco incision.

Click below to learn how to load the B versus C cartridge for three-piece IOLs:

6 Comments

  1. Thank you a lot for the videos. They are so informative and clear . Keep up a good job.

  2. With the C cartridge, even when the IOL is inserted as indicated by the cartridge, sometimes the first haptic gets twisted. Any tips to avoid that?

    1. The key is using an instrument like the chopper to pull the leading haptic straight prior to injecting the IOL.

Leave a Reply