Effects of peripheral redeepening on radial keratotomy surgery

In recent years, considerable attention has been given to the long- and short-term effects of radial keratotomy. These effects vary according to a number of key surgical parameters, including optical clear zone size, number of incisions, depth of incisions, and placement of incisions. This paper examines the effect of peripheral redeepening on standard eight-incision radial keratotomy. By comparing a series of cases with 3-mm clear zones, we found that, on average, an additional 0.47 diopters of correction could be directly attributed to peripheral redeepening after controlling for the effects of preoperative myopia, age, and other related measures. This additional correction could be beneficial to patients in whom maximum effects are desired.