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Descemetic and Predescemetic DALK in Keratoconus Patients: A Clinical and Confocal Perspective Study

Year: 2014

Type: article

Abstract: PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical outcomes and in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) features of keratoconus patients who underwent deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK). METHODS: DALK was performed using the big bubble technique in all the patients. If the bubble was not successful to bare the descemet membrane, a manual dissection layer-by layer was performed to expose a deep stromal plane close to the DM. The patients were divided in two groups depending on the intraoperative baring of the descemet membrane: predescemetic DALK (PD-DALK) and descemetic DALK (D-DALK) group. RESULTS: One month after surgery the D-DALK patients show an increase of mean BCVA. In the PD-DALK group mean BCVA did not show significant improvement as compared to preoperative values. At 6 months after surgery mean BCVA was found to be similar in both groups. At 1 month IVCM the peak of reflectivity of the interface was lower in D-DALK group compared to PD-DALK. At 6 months the values of reflectivity were comparable. CONCLUSIONS: At 1 month D-DALK seems to lead to a minor interface reflectivity and to a better BCVA; these differences disappear after 6 months and the values of interface reflectivity and BCVA are comparable between D-DALK and PD-DALK.

Source: BioMed Research International

DOI: 10.1155/2014/123156