CXL plus PRK safe and effective at 10 years

Anastasios John Kanellopoulos MD The Athens Protocol for treating progressive keratoconus with photorefractive keratotomy and corneal cross-linking appears to be safe and effective, with little change after the first year in the majority of cases, although in some cases there is a progressive flattening in some corneas, said Anastasios John Kanellopoulos MD, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA. At the 23rd ESCRS Meeting in Athens, Greece, Dr Kannelopoulos presented an observational case series of 144 eyes treated for progressive keratoconus with the Athens Protocol procedure. All underwent preoperative and postoperative examination an average of 10 years after treatment The study showed that Snellen uncorrected distance visual acuity (UDVA) improved at one-year follow-up from 0.19 preoperatively to 0.53 and by 10 years improved further to 0.55±0.19. In addition, corrected distance visual acuity increased from 0.59 to 0.80 at one year, remaining stable at 10 years at 0.81. In addition, mean minimal corneal thickness decreased from 468.74 microns preoperatively to 391 microns at one year, but by 10 years had increased to 395.42 microns. Dr Kannelopoulos noted that 136 eyes showed no further keratoconic progression, although corneal topography showed progression in three eyes and five eyes had a hyperopic shift during the 10-year follow-up.

Tags: corneal crosslinking