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No increased graft failure from combined PK and cataract surgery vs. PK alone
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Combining penetrating keratoplasty with cataract extraction has no greater risk of graft failure or allogenic graft rejection than penetrating keratoplasty alone, according to a study.
Matthew Green, MBBS, of the Gold Coast Hospital in Southport, Australia, and colleagues at two hospitals in Queensland retrospectively compared graft failure rates and visual outcomes in 107 eyes of 99 patients that underwent PK alone or combined with cataract surgery.
The PK-only group included 58 eyes treated at an average age of 64 years and followed for a mean of 14 months. The combined surgery group included 49 eyes treated at a mean age of 65 years of age and followed for an average of 17 months. Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy represented the most common indication for PK in this group, according to the study.
The researchers found no significant difference between the groups in rates of graft survival, postoperative visual acuity or refractive outcomes.
Overall, seven grafts failed and four had an allogenic rejection without failure during follow-up. Postoperative logMAR visual acuity averaged 0.42, with 71% of patients having a postop visual acuity of 6/12 or better, according to the study.
"Over a short follow-up, keratoplasty combined with cataract extraction [and IOL] insertion showed a similar risk of graft failure or allogenic graft rejection when compared with keratoplasty alone, and we recommend the triple procedure for quicker visual recovery and less operative procedures," the authors wrote.
The study is published in the May/June issue of Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology.