Complications of excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy for myopia

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and complication rates of excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). Setting: Assutah Laser Center, Tel-Aviv, Israel. Methods: This retrospective study evaluated the complication rate after PRK in 825 consecutive patients who had PRK for myopia and had a follow-up of at least 12 months. Results: At 12 months postoperatively, 4.0% of patients suffered from overcorrection and 8.6% from undercorrection. Induced astigmatism developed in 1.4% of all operated eyes. Three percent of the patients had haze, and 3.6% reported glare or halos. Twenty-three eyes (2.7%) lost one line or more of best corrected visual acuity (BCVA). Ptosis developed in 0.4% of the eyes, and 3.5% had a significant increase in intraocular pressure resulting from corticosteroid treatment. There were no complications in 678 eyes (82.5%). Conclusion: Eighty-two percent of eyes having PRK did not develop complications. In 18.0% one or more complication, mainly undercorrection, overcorrection, or loss of BCVA, occurred.