Abstract
Purpose: :
This study reports the development of PMD after collagen cross linking and the side effects of treatment.
Methods: :
8 patients (13 eyes) with PMD were treated with collagen cross linking (riboflavin and UVA-radiation). Corneal topography, pachymetry and visual acuity were examined before and up to 18 months after treatment. Patients were monitored for appearance of side effects of the treatment.
Results: :
Corneal thickness (500.2 ± 30.26µm to 504.6 ± 33.95µm) and k-values (k-max 47.04 ± 1.46 to 47.24 ± 1.54) of the treated eyes did not change significantly during the observation period. Visual acuity was stable (0.57 ± 0.22 to 0.64 ± 0.18) except for one treated eye which showed a decrease from 0.8 to 0.5 in spite of stability of topography and clear optical media. None of the treated eyes developed a side effect of notable severity.
Conclusions: :
Collagen cross linking is a safe and barely incriminating method to stiffen the cornea in ectatic disorders. In the observation period progress of PMD was not discoverable in any case after execution of collagen cross linking. With regard to the course of disease without treatment the long-term effect of the treatment remains to be observed.
Clinical Trial: :
retrospective analysis
Keywords: cornea: clinical science • cornea: stroma and keratocytes