[Precision of lenticular thickness in relation to full stroma corneal thickness. Experimental results with the...

In this study 150 pig corneas and 20 human corneas were dissected with an automatic rotating microkeratome for lamellar grafting. The cornea thickness varied between 0.507 mm and 0.829 with an average 0.66 mm. The aim of this investigation was to show the influence of corneal thickness, the chosen diameter and spacing on the precision of cutting lenticles. We did ten series: the pig corneas were dissected at three different intervals of 0.15, 0.25, 0.35 mm and diameters of 9 and 6mm. The human corneas were cut at intervals of 0.4 mm and 0.25 mm and with diameter of 9 and 7 mm. Although the pig corneas were fresh, the intraocular pressure was too low. It was raised with an injection of physiological salt solution to a predefined level. The rotating speed of the trephine blade, the speed of blade advancement and lubrication fluid were kept constant. Ultrasound pachymetry was performed on the center of the corneas before cutting had on the lenticles afterward. We showed that a thick corneal diameter had a negative influence, i.e., the greater the diameter, the lesser the precision; the same was true for the corneal thickness. On the other hand, the intervals had just the opposite effect: the closer they were, the better the correlation. The human eye results were different in quantity but not in tendency, with less striking effects. The average variation for pig corneas was 22% and for human eyes 8%. The best results were received with a large interval, a small diameter, and a normal corneal thickness in human eyes.