Postoperative management and follow-up after corneal flap loss following laser in situ keratomileusis.

Item does not contain fulltextWe present 3 cases of flap loss within 2 weeks of unilateral laser in situ keratomileusis. In all patients, spontaneous regeneration of the epithelial layer, covering the ablated stroma, was expected. In 2 patients, the best spectacle-corrected visual acuity recovered to 20/25 within 6 months and in 1 patient, a contact lens was fitted 6 months after the accident, restoring visual acuity to 20/25. The 6-month follow-up and the contact lens fitting technique are described

Wavefront-guided versus standard laser in situ keratomileusis to correct low to moderate myopia.

To evaluate the 6-month refractive outcomes of wavefront-guided laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) (Zyoptix, Bausch & Lomb) versus standard LASIK (PlanoScan, Bausch & Lomb).Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands.In a prospective randomized study, 12 patients with myopia had Zyoptix wavefront-guided LASIK in 1 eye and PlanoScan LASIK in the contralateral eye. The safety, efficacy, predictability, stability, optical zone size, and ablation depth were evaluated.The mean preoperative spherical equivalent (SE) of the subjective manifest refraction was -3.88 diopters (D) +/- 1.92 (SD) (Zyoptix) and -4.35 +/- 2.11 D (PlanoScan). Six months postoperatively, 8% of PlanoScan patients and 16% of Zyoptix patients gained at least 2 lines of best corrected visual acuity; the safety index was 1.12 in the Zyoptix group and 1.08 in the PlanoScan group. An SE of +/-1.00 D and +/-0.50 D was achieved by 100% and 92%, respectively, in both groups. There were 2 undercorrections in the Zyoptix group and 1 undercorrection in the PlanoScan group. In the Zyoptix group, 100% had a UCVA of 20/40 and 67% of 20/20 and in the PlanoScan group, 100% and 83%, respectively. The efficacy index was 0.87 and 0.93 in the Zyoptix group and PlanoScan group, respectively. The mean optical zone 6 months postoperatively was 6.16 +/- 0.34 mm in the PlanoScan group and 6.23 +/- 0.41 mm in the Zyoptix group (P =.67). The ablation depth per diopter of defocus equivalent was 13.5 +/- 4.6 microm/D and 8.6 +/- 4.4 microm/D, respectively (P =.01).An excellent safety index was achieved with the Zyoptix and PlanoScan treatments. The efficacy index was marginally lower for Zyoptix treatments as a result of 2 undercorrections. The ablation depth in the Zyoptix group per diopter of defocus equivalent was significantly lower than in the PlanoScan group. Further refinements in defining the ablation algorithms may increase the efficacy index

Functional outcomes and patient satisfaction after laser in situ keratomileusis for correction of myopia.

Item does not contain fulltextPURPOSE: To determine subjective patient satisfaction and self-perceived quality of vision after laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) to correct myopia and myopic astigmatism. SETTING: Department of Ophthalmology, Academic Hospital Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands. METHODS: A validated questionnaire consisting of 66 items was self-administered by 142 consecutive patients. Seven scales covering a specific aspect of quality of vision were formulated. Aspects included global satisfaction, quality of uncorrected and corrected vision, quality of night vision, glare, daytime driving, and night driving. Main outcome measures were responses to individual questions and scale scores, and correlations with clinical parameters including refractive outcome, uncorrected visual acuity, best corrected visual acuity, ablation depth, and scotopic pupil-optical zone disparity were obtained. RESULTS: The mean score for the overall satisfaction was 4.1 +/- 0.71 (SD) (scale 0 to 5.0). A total of 92.2% of patients were satisfied or very satisfied with their surgery, 93.6% considered their main goal of surgery achieved, and 92.3% would choose to have LASIK surgery again. Satisfaction with uncorrected vision was 3.03 +/- 0.71. The mean score for glare was 3.0 +/- 0.9. At night, glare from lights was believed to be more important than before surgery by 47.2%. Glare from oncoming car headlights after surgery was reported by 58.4% and was believed to be more bothersome for night driving than before surgery by 52.8%. Night driving was rated more difficult than before surgery by 39.4%, whereas 59.3% had less difficulty driving at night. There was a significant correlation between the uncorrected vision score and the postoperative spherical equivalent (r = 0.245) and postoperative astigmatism (r = 0.265). There was no correlation between the glare or night vision scores and the degree of correction, the amount of ablation depth, or the disparity between the scotopic pupil and the optical zone. CONCLUSIONS: Self-perceived uncorrected vision after LASIK surgery for the correction of myopia and myopic astigmatism appears to be very good and is related to the postoperative residual error. Although the majority of patients postoperatively experienced glare, particularly with driving at night, this was not related to the pupil-optical zone disparity or degree of correction