AS-OCT useful for flap thickness measurement

Anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) is a useful imaging tool for flap thickness measurement after femtosecond-assisted LASIK, according to data published in Ophthalmic Surgery, Lasers and Imaging.

Dr Raciha Beril Kucumen et al., Department of Ophthalmology, Yeditepe University Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey, prospectively studied 51 eyes of 26 patients suffering from myopia and myopic astigmatism. At 1 week preoperatively and 1 month postoperatively high resolution corneal images were observed.

The findings suggested that AS-OCT might not give accurate measurements in the central 2 mm area of the cornea. However, the measurements recorded at vertex and at 1 mm nasally were easily identified.

AS-OCT gives accurate high-resolution images enabling quantitative evaluaion of the flap-stroma relationship but precision is compromised in the central cornea. Overall, the researchers found that AS-OCT is a significantly useful imaging tool.