title: Long-term efficacy of phototherapeutic keratectomy on recurrent corneal erosion syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the long-term sequelae, principally time-to-first-recurrence, of phototherapeutic keratectomy (PTK) for the treatment of recurrent corneal erosion syndrome (RCES).
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective case series was performed. Thirty-nine eyes in 33 patients with RCES required PTK and were treated using the VISX STAR Excimer Laser System. The data were analyzed with the Kaplan-Meier survival estimate.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients were characterized by the cause of their RCES. More than 50% had epithelial corneal dystrophies, 31% were posttraumatic, and 15% were idiopathic. Overall, 25% of eyes had a recurrence by 3 months, and 36% had a recurrence by 9 months. The mean follow-up time was 17.4 months (range, 0.4-67.6 months). Of those who had a primary recurrence, 38% had a second and 15% had a third. Visual acuity was slightly decreased within 2 weeks after surgery, and 10% of patients developed transient haze. No serious adverse effects were reported.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PTK is an important treatment of RCES refractory to other therapies. Long-term data suggest that most patients treated with PTK do not develop recurrences, and side effects from PTK are minimal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, The University of Ottawa Eye Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Baryla
authors.forename: Y I
authors.initials: YI
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: W G
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Hodge
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003316:Corneal Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D019573:Epithelium, Corneal / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D054018:Lasers, Excimer; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018903:Photorefractive Keratectomy / Q000379:methods*; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013577:Syndrome; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity