[Epikeratophakia--a new procedure in refractive surgery of the cornea]

The epikeratophakia operation developed by Kaufman represents an additional procedure in refractive surgery of the cornea. The application of individually prepared corneal tissue lenticles on top of the recipient cornea can be used in refractive (Keratolens) and tectonic (Keratopatch) problems. The most important indication for this operation is monocular aphakia in which a contact lens is not tolerated. As is pointed out in the literature, postoperative visual acuity is reduced in some patients by interface densities and incomplete epithelialization. The advantage of this newly developed method is that it offers the ophthalmic surgeon a novel procedure for the indications mentioned which does not involve any major investment in apparatus.