Foldable and Hydration-Rigidified Acrylate Polymer for a Highly Stable and UV-Filtering Phakic Intraocular Lens

Phakic intraocular lenses (pIOLs) are widely used for myopia correction, but face challenges such as unfolding, displacement, glistenings, and bioadhesion. To address these issues, various transparent BPH polymers were synthesized by integrating hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (PEGMMA) with hydrophobic benzyl methacrylate (BzMA) and 2-hydroxy-4-(methacryloyloxy)benzophenone (HMBP). The prepared BPH materials exhibit high transparency, a tunable refractive index, and UV-filtering properties. With the integration of PEGMMA, the polymers exhibit a decreasing glass transition temperature (<i>T</i>_g) and modulus and an interesting hydration-induced rigidification due to microphase separation triggered by water uptake of hydrophilic PEG chain segments. This characteristic simultaneously endows the BPH pIOLs with the foldability essential for small-incision implantation and the rigidity required for enhanced stability after implantation. PEGMMA introduction also reduces glistenings and enhances hydrophilicity, improving resistance to protein, cell, and bacterial adhesion. In vitro cytotoxicity and in vivo subcutaneous implantation confirm their biosafety. The UV-filtering BPH platform resolves the foldability-stability trade-off and suppresses glistenings and bioadhesion, representing a promising option for pIOLs.