[Astigmatism-oriented perforating keratoplasty. A possibility for minimizing postoperative astigmatism?]

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Corneal Surgery
• Optometry

Background:

• Pilot study investigating postmortem donor cornea astigmatism evaluation.
• Assessing the impact of donor cornea astigmatism on post-keratoplasty outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if donor cornea astigmatism can be measured postmortem.
• To evaluate the influence of donor cornea astigmatism orientation on postoperative astigmatism after keratoplasty.

Main Methods:

• Corneoscleral rims measured with a hand keratometer.
• 38 patients undergoing penetrating keratoplasty divided into three groups based on donor-recipient corneal axis orientation.
• Postoperative astigmatism compared to a control group.

Main Results:

• Donor astigmatism axis reoriented in 2-4 months when opposed to the recipient axis (Group B).
• Recipient axis orientation was maintained when donor astigmatism was aligned similarly (Group C).
• Mean postoperative astigmatism varied by group, with Group B showing less astigmatism.

Conclusions:

• Postmortem evaluation of corneal astigmatism in donor eyes is feasible.
• Donor cornea astigmatism directly impacts postoperative astigmatism in recipients.
• Aligning donor astigmatism against the recipient's axis can reduce post-keratoplasty astigmatism.