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Corneal sensitivity after LASEK may vary
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Recovery of central corneal sensitivity after LASEK may vary among myopic patients, according to a study.
Ren Y. Chu, MD, and colleagues at the Eye and ENT Hospital in Shanghai, China, examined 50 patients divided into a low-moderate myopia group and a high myopia group. They measured corneal sensitivity using an esthesiometer with a maximal filament length of 60 mm, which corresponds to the lowest possible pressure, the authors said. Filament lengths were subsequently decreased in 5 mm steps until the patient could perceive the sensation.
Results indicated patients in the low-moderate myopia group recovered central corneal sensitivity to preoperative values at the 3-month follow-up. Patients in the high myopia group had a slower recovery, reaching preoperative values only at the 6-month follow-up.
The results suggest that ablation depth during surgery affects corneal sensitivity recovery, the authors said. The occurrence of post-LASEK corneal scarring may also influence recovery of central corneal sensitivity, they added.
The study is published in the May issue of the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.