LASIK correction of vision in adults with unilateral amblyopia.
OBJECTIVE
to evaluate the effects of laser refractive surgery in adult patients with mild to moderate amblyopia due to anisometropic myopia.


METHODS
a retrospective review of 30 patients (60 eyes) with unilateral amblyopia (corrected distance visual acuity [CDVA] 0.6 or worse) who underwent simultaneous bilateral laser vision correction using the Technolas 217z excimer laser (Bausch & Lomb) was performed. Mean patient age was 31.03 ± 10.05 years (range: 18 to 53 years). Visual outcomes in the amblyopic eye were compared with those in the fellow nonamblyopic control eye of the same patient.


RESULTS
mean preoperative CDVA improved in amblyopic eyes from 0.50 ± 0.13 to 0.57 ± 0.20 postoperatively (average gain of 0.075 ± 0.14; P=.007) and improved from 0.92 ± 0.12 preoperatively to 0.93±0.15 after surgery (mean gain of 0.013 ± 0.14; P=.603) in the fellow nonamblyopic eyes. The safety index was significantly greater in the amblyopic eyes compared with the nonamblyopic fellow eyes (1.15 ± 0.30 vs 1.02 ± 0.15, P=.035), therefore, no difference was noted in efficacy (P=.913). Five of 30 eyes with mild to moderate amblyopia gained 2 to 4 lines of CDVA.


CONCLUSIONS
laser refractive surgery for myopic correction was found to be safe and effective in eyes with mild to moderate amblyopia.
Oruçoğlu-Orucov
Faik
F
Department of Ophthalmology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. faikorucov@yahoo.co.uk
Frucht-Pery
Joseph
J
Landau
David
D
Strasman
Eyal
E
Solomon
Abraham
A
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000550:Amblyopia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D015858:Anisometropia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D020731:Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ / Q000379:methods*; D054018:Lasers, Excimer / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009216:Myopia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D012029:Refraction, Ocular / Q000502:physiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult