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Epikeratophakia in children with corneal lacerations
Insights
Epikeratophakia grafts successfully corrected aphakia in children with traumatic cataracts and corneal lacerations. This procedure offers prompt visual restoration, even on scarred corneas.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Corneal Surgery
- Pediatric Ophthalmology
Background:
- Traumatic cataracts and corneal lacerations in children can lead to aphakia.
- Large corneal lacerations (>3 mm) present significant optical correction challenges.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of epikeratophakia grafts in optically correcting aphakia in pediatric patients with traumatic corneal injuries.
- To assess visual outcomes and graft success rates in this specific patient population.
Main Methods:
- Epikeratophakia grafts were surgically implanted in six children (ages 9 months to 3.25 years) with aphakia secondary to traumatic cataracts and corneal lacerations.
- Graft success, corneal curvature changes, over-refraction, deprivation interval, and visual acuity were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Five out of six epikeratophakia grafts were successful.
- Average increase in corneal curvature was 16.11 diopters, with an average over-refraction of -0.73 diopters.
- Average visual acuity for four verbal patients with successful grafts was 20/60, with deprivation intervals ranging from 2 months to 2 years.
Conclusions:
- Epikeratophakia is a viable and effective treatment for optical correction of aphakia in children with scarred and irregular corneas resulting from trauma.
- The procedure allows for prompt visual function restoration and may be advantageous over penetrating keratoplasty in select cases.
Abstract:
Epikeratophakia grafts were used to optically correct aphakia in six children who suffered traumatic cataracts and corneal lacerations which were greater than 3 mm in length. The ages of the patients at the time of corneal laceration ranged from nine months to 3 3/12 years. Five of the six grafts were successful. The average increase in corneal curvature was 16.11 diopters with an average over-refraction of -0.73 diopters. The deprivation interval in the five children with successful grafts ranged from two months to two years, and the average visual acuity for the four verbal patients with successful grafts was 20/60. This series demonstrates that epikeratophakia grafts can be successfully applied to scarred and irregular corneas and may be superior to penetrating keratoplasty in some cases, because epikeratophakia allows for a prompt restoration of visual function.