Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 11, 2025
Author Spotlight: Advancements in Refractive Surgical Correction for Presbyopia and Exploring Postoperative Visual Acuity
Published on: September 20, 2024
Comparing visual outcomes of keratorefractive lenticule extraction, PRK, and LASIK procedures in the military
Charisma B Evangelista1, Justin P Harris, Toan M Trinh
1From the Joint Warfighter Refractive Surgery Center, Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas (Evangelista, Harris, Kohler, Capo-Aponte); Department of Ophthalmology, Brooke Army Medical Center, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas (Evangelista, Harris); United States Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory, Fort Novosel, Alabama (Trinh, Mackie, Turovets); Department of Graduate Medical Education, Brooke Army Medical Center, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas (Aden).
Purpose:
To assess the 6-month visual and refractive outcomes of keratorefractive lenticule extraction (KLEx) as compared with laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) and photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) in a military population at a Joint Warfighter Refractive Surgery Center.
Setting:
Joint Warfighter Refractive Surgery Center (JWRSC), Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas.
Design:
Retrospective study.
Methods:
Patients who underwent KLEx, PRK, or LASIK between 2019 and 2022 were included. Anonymized data collected included demographics, preoperative and postoperative uncorrected and corrected visual acuity, and manifest refraction.
Results:
Of the 4466 treated eyes, 737 (16.5%) underwent the KLEx, 2801 (62.7%) underwent PRK, and 928 (20.8%) underwent LASIK treatment. Regarding efficacy, there was no statistically significant difference at postoperative month (POM) 6 between the percentage of eyes reaching an uncorrected distance visual acuity of 20/20 or better between the 3 procedures. At POM1 ( P < .001) and POM3 ( P < .001), there were a greater number of eyes in the KLEx group that achieved the same or 1 line better of distance visual acuity than the PRK group. The efficacy indices of KLEx, PRK, and LASIK at POM6 were 1.09, 1.10, and 0.97, respectively. The safety indices for KLEx, PRK, and LASIK at POM6 were 0.96, 1.01, and 0.81, respectively.
Conclusions:
After the initial recovery period, KLEx demonstrates comparable outcomes in efficacy, safety, and accuracy as compared with LASIK and PRK.
