Corneal sensitivity after radial keratotomy

Corneal sensitivity was tested in 76 eyes of 40 patients who underwent radial keratotomy for the correction of myopia, and radial keratotomy plus transverse incisions for the correction of myopia and astigmatism. There was a decrease in corneal sensitivity in 30.9 and 9.5% of patients undergoing radial keratotomy after 6 and 12 months, respectively. Approximately 70% of patients in this group had a recovery of lost sensitivity after 6 months. There was a similar decrease in sensitivity in 79.4 and 47.0% of patients undergoing radial keratotomy with the addition of transverse incisions for astigmatism at 6 and 12 months, respectively. The recovery rate in this group was 40.7%. The most significant loss of corneal sensation was in the areas central to the transverse incisions. The depth of the transverse incision, as well as the preoperative astigmatism, appeared to be factors in the loss of corneal sensation as well as in the recovery of the corneal sensitivity. There were no complications noted in this study as a result of decreased corneal sensitivity.