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Femtosecond LASIK and smile yield similar outcomes
SAN FRANCISCO — Small-incision lenticule extraction and femtosecond laser-assisted LASIK offered comparable visual and refractive outcomes, a speaker said here.
At the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery meeting, Angie De La Mota, MD, presented results of a randomized study comparing visual, refractive, anatomic and sensory outcomes with small-incision lenticule extraction (smile) and femtosecond LASIK.
"Femtosecond LASIK has become the preferred treatment for myopic refractive errors due to the creation of more stable and safer flaps and relatively low incidence of flap-related complications," De La Mota said. "However, dry eye and corneal biomechanical abnormalities are not decreased. And each requires the use of two laser platforms, increasing the time and cost of the procedure."
The prospective study included 40 eyes of 20 patients with a mean age of 20 years. One eye of each patient was randomized to undergo LASIK with the VisuMax 500 Hz femtosecond laser and MEL 80 excimer laser (both Carl Zeiss Meditec). Fellow eyes underwent smile with the VisuMax femtosecond laser.
Patients were evaluated preoperatively and at 1 week and 1, 3 and 6 months after surgery.
Study results showed that corrected distance visual acuity was 20/25 or better in 86% of eyes in the LASIK group and 95% of eyes in the smile group.
One patient lost one line of corrected distance visual acuity. Achieved spherical equivalent refraction was within 1 D of the target in 79% of LASIK eyes and 93% of smile eyes, De La Mota said.
Disclosure: De La Mota has no relevant financial disclosures.