An adjustable single running suture technique to reduce postkeratoplasty astigmatism. A preliminary report.
The authors compared postkeratoplasty astigmatism over a 4-month period after surgery in a randomized, prospective study of two groups of patients (total N = 18) who received two different suture techniques. The test group N = 8) had a single running suture with postoperative suture adjustment; on the basis of computer-assisted topographic analysis, the suture was tightened in the flatter meridian and loosened in the steeper meridian in the first month after surgery. The control group (N = 10) had a standard double running suture procedure with no postoperative adjustment; the single running 10-0 nylon suture was removed 3 months after surgery. Four months after penetrating keratoplasty, mean (+/- standard deviation) astigmatism in the test group was 1.7 +/- 0.7 diopters (D), and all patients had less than 2.6 D of astigmatism. In the control group, mean astigmatism was significantly higher (5.4 +/- 2.4 D; range, 0.7-9.0 D; P less than 0.01). The results suggest that postkeratoplasty astigmatism can be reduced with the single running suture technique accompanied by postoperative suture adjustment.
Lin
D T
DT
LSU Eye Center, Louisiana State University Medical Center School of Medicine, New Orleans.
Wilson
S E
SE
Reidy
J J
JJ
Klyce
S D
SD
McDonald
M B
MB
Kaufman
H E
HE
McNeill
J I
JI
D001251:Astigmatism / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D015948:Keratoplasty, Penetrating / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011897:Random Allocation; D013536:Suture Techniques