Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose:To evaluate the relationship between ablation diameter, pupil size and visual function as measured by a vision–specific quality of life instrument after laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Setting:Department of Ophthalmology, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA USA. Participants:Of 300 patients eligible for this study, 97 (32.3%) who responded to the mailed study questionnaire (NIH National Eye Institute Refractive Error Quality of Life [RQL] Instrument). Intervention:All patients received a one–pass, multizone VISX® excimer laser ablation as part of a standard LASIK procedure. Attempted correction ranged from –1.00 to –11.50 diopters. Methods: The NIH National Eye Institute Refractive Error Quality of Life (RQL) Instrument was administered to 97 patients after LASIK. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated for the association between RQL subscale scores and characteristics including pupil diameter and uncorrected vision. Results: The correlations between mesopic and scotopic pupil diameter and the RQL satisfaction score were 0.12 and 0.19, respectively; however, neither association was statistically significant at the P = 0.05 level. As uncorrected visual acuity in the better eye improved, patients reported significantly less worry (–0.22, P=0.030), more satisfaction (–0.25, P=0.013), clearer vision (–0.25, P=0.014), and better far vision (–0.24, P=0.020) according to the respective RQL subscale scores. Conclusions: Larger pupil diameter is not significantly associated with postoperative satisfaction and visual function as measured by the RQL. The significant associations between pupil size and uncorrected visual acuity validate the RQL instrument and confirm post–operative UCVA as a strong predictor of patient satisfaction after refractive surgery.
Keywords: refractive surgery: LASIK • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: outcomes/complications • quality of life