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Ye's Swing Technique for Small-incision Lenticule Extraction Surgery
Published on: June 27, 2025
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Unilateral ectasia after small-incision lenticule extraction
Eric E Pazo1, Richard N McNeely1, Samuel Arba-Mosquera2
1Cathedral Eye Clinic, Belfast, United Kingdom; School of Biomedical Sciences, Ulster University, Coleraine, United Kingdom.
Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery
|December 22, 2018
Summary
A young man developed unilateral corneal ectasia after small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE). Corneal crosslinking halted progression, preserving some vision in the affected eye.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Corneal Surgery
- Refractive Surgery
Background:
- Small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) is a popular refractive surgery procedure.
- Corneal ectasia is a rare but serious complication following refractive surgery.
Observation:
- A 23-year-old male patient presented with unilateral corneal ectasia.
- The patient had undergone bilateral SMILE with normal preoperative corneal topography and adequate thickness.
- Ectasia was detected in the right eye 12 months post-surgery and progressed by 15 months.
Findings:
- The patient required a refractive correction of -3.00 D (right eye) and -3.50 D (left eye).
- Corneal crosslinking was performed to manage the progressive ectasia.
- Post-treatment, uncorrected visual acuity was 0.1 logMAR and corrected visual acuity was -0.1 logMAR in the right eye.
Implications:
- This case highlights the potential risk of corneal ectasia even with normal preoperative findings after SMILE.
- Corneal crosslinking can be an effective treatment to stabilize ectasia.
- Further research is needed to identify risk factors and optimize patient selection for SMILE.
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