September 25, 2013
1 min read
Save

Cross-linking reduces steepening, halts progression of keratoconus up to 5 years

You've successfully added to your alerts. You will receive an email when new content is published.

Click Here to Manage Email Alerts

We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com.

Corneal collagen cross-linking safely halted the progression of keratoconus for up to 5 years and prevented the need for keratoplasty, according to a study.

The prospective analysis included 40 eyes of 32 patients with progressive keratoconus and a mean age of 22.45 years.

Main outcome measures were logMAR uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA), best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), manifest refraction spherical equivalent (MRSE), maximum keratometry (max-K), average of minimum and maximum keratometry (mean-K), central corneal thickness (CCT) and anterior and posterior elevation.

Mean UCVA was 0.67 at baseline and 0.65 at 5-year follow-up; the gain was statistically insignificant. Mean BCVA improved significantly, from 0.31 to 0.19 (P = .016).

Mean MRSE improved significantly at 6 months (P = .050) and 1 year (P = .027). However, the 12.89% decrease in MRSE at 5 years was insignificant.

Mean max-K decreased by 0.24 D and mean-K decreased by 0.11 D; both changes were insignificant.

Mean anterior elevation at the apex decreased significantly (P = .030).

Mean CCT increased insignificantly, from 483.87 μm to 485.95 μm.

Disclosure: The study authors report no relevant financial disclosures.