Intralamellar keratoplasty

Intralamellar keratoplasty with implantation of corneal segments

Indications:

• Keratoconus with low visual acuity with correction and contact lens intolerance
• Progressive keratoconus
• Pellucid marginal corneal degeneration
• Corneal ectasia after LASIK and PRK
• Post-traumatic corneal astigmatism

Contra indications:

• Acute keratoconus
• Gross central corneal opacity
• Severe autoimmune diseases
• Chronic corneal ectasia
• Unreasonable expectations among patients

For implantation of corneal segments it is necessary to form a tunnel in patient’s cornea at a certain depth. Before femto lasers appeared this stage was performed only by mechanical dissection of cornea with a special knife. When the tunnel is mechanically formed there is a risk of cornea perforation, unevenness of depth and width of a formed tunnel. Femtolaser makes it possible to have a tunnel of a definite depth with micron precision, which would be evenly thick, with minimal damage of surrounding tissue and that allows to implant the corneal segments safely. It provides predictable and highly qualified result of operation.

Operation is painless, performed under local eye drops anesthesia, takes 15-20 minutes. Unpleasant feelings after operation do not last long. By evening patients return to their everyday life. Rings can be removed or adjusted.

In our practice we use Russian ICS manufactured by OOO Scientific and Experimental production “Eye Microsurgery” made of polymethylmethacrylate and represents a segment with an arch which extension is 160 °(90, 120, 160, 210°), mount 0,6 mm, height 150-450 mcm, inner diameter 5?0 mm and outer diameter 6,2 mm, with cross-sectional area of semisphere shape. Absolute compatibility of ocular tissues and materials the rings are made of.

Implanted corneal segments actions:

• stop the keratoectatic process
• mechanical support for ectatic cornea
• change the curvature of the front and the back surface of cornea
• increase of the visual acuity with and without additional correction
• reduction of spherical and cylindrical components
• aberrations reduction
• better tolerance of contact lenses
• possibility of eyeglasses correction and other