Air puff induced corneal vibrations: theoretical simulations and clinical observations

To investigate air puff induced corneal vibrations and their relationship to the intraocular pressure (IOP), viscoelasticity, mass, and elasticity of the cornea based on theoretical simulations and preliminary clinical observations.

To simulate the corneal movement during air puff deformation, a kinematic viscoelastic corneal model was developed involving the factors of corneal mass, damping coefficient, elasticity, and IOP. Different parameter values were taken to investigate how factors would affect the corneal movements. Two clinical ocular instruments, CorVis ST (Oculus Optikgeräte GmbH, Wetzlar, Germany) and the Ocular Response Analyzer (ORA; Reichert, Inc., Buffalo, NY), were employed to observe the corneal dynamical behaviors.

Numerical results showed that during the air puff deformation, there would be vibrations along with the corneal deformation, and the damping viscoelastic response of the cornea had the potential to reduce the vibration amplitude. With consistent IOP, the overall vibration amplitude and inward motion depths were smaller with a stiffer cornea.

A kinematic viscoelastic model of the cornea is presented to illustrate how the vibrations are associated with factors such as corneal mass, viscoelasticity, and IOP. Also, the predicted corneal vibrations during air puff deformation were confirmed by clinical observation.