Epithelial Remodelling in Myopia After Keratorefractive Lenticule Extraction.

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Refractive Surgery
• Corneal Science

Background:

• Myopia and astigmatism are common refractive errors.
• Keratorefractive lenticule extraction (KLEx) is a surgical option for myopia correction.
• Understanding epithelial changes post-KLEx is crucial for assessing refractive surgery outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze longitudinal epithelial changes after myopia treatment with KLEx.
• To evaluate zonal epithelial thickness changes up to 12 months post-SmartSight procedure.
• To determine the extent of epithelial hyperplasia following KLEx.

Main Methods:

• Anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) was used for analysis.
• Epithelial thickness was measured in 80 eyes treated with SmartSight.
• Data were collected from postoperative day 1 to 12 months, including patient age, refractive error, and preoperative epithelial thickness.

Main Results:

• Epithelial thickness increased by 3±5 µm centrally and 4±4 µm in peripheral zones at 12 months.
• Epithelial changes were most variable initially (POD1) and stabilized by 1 week.
• No significant difference in epithelial change was observed across zones or correlation with refractive outcomes.

Conclusions:

• KLEx with SCHWIND ATOS for moderate myopia results in minimal epithelial hyperplasia.
• The observed epithelial thickening is subtle and below clinical relevance.
• The procedure does not appear to induce a regression-inducing lentoid.