[Sutureless corneal cataract surgery. Limbal release incisions for correcting astigmatism].
BACKGROUND
To prevent surgically induced astigmatism following clear corneal cataract surgery.


METHODS
Limbal relaxing incisions of 6 or 8 mm length respectively and 0.5 mm depth were performed in 52 patients with spheric cornea or astigmatism with the rule of 0.8 +/- 0.3 dpt after temporal corneal cataract incision. The same amount of patients, operated on with the same surgical procedure except keratotomies, served as control.


RESULTS
After 6 months the with-the-wound-change (WTW) in the LRI axis using the Hollady method was -0.08 +/- 0.5 dpt in the spheric cases with limbal keratotomy and +0.5 +/- 0.7 dpt in the control cases. The patients with preoperative astigmatism with the rule showed a WTW in the LRI axis of -0.09 +/- 0.5 dpt in the keratotomy cases and +0.39 +/- 0.7 dpt in the corresponding control patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Limbal relaxing incision is a reliable and safe procedure to reduce postoperative astigmatism after cataract surgery.
Müller-Jensen
K
K
Augenklinik, Städtisches Klinikum Karlsruhe.
Fischer
P
P
Siepe
U
U
D001251:Astigmatism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D002387:Cataract Extraction / Q000379:methods*; D019781:Corneal Topography; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016850:Limbus Corneae / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis; D012029:Refraction, Ocular