Swept-Source OCT Biometry-Derived Corneal Optical Quality: Repeatability Limits for IOL Design Selection in Refractive Cataract Surgery.

PURPOSE: To provide the first reliability analysis of swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) biometry-derived corneal optical quality metrics that may impact intraocular lens design selection in refractive cataract surgery.

METHODS

This was a retrospective instrument evaluation study at the Department of Ophthalmology, Hanusch Hospital, Vienna, Austria. Three consecutive preoperative single-operator scans of patients with cataract were analyzed using the updated wavefront analysis software of a SSOCT biometer (ANTERION; Heidelberg Engineering). Corneal higher order aberrations (HOAs) were quantified as paired polar Zernike magnitudes, dioptric vector components, individual signed Zernike coefficients, and root mean square (RMS) values. For each metric, pooled within-subject standard deviation (Sw), coefficient of variation, and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were calculated. Primary analysis was done at a 4-mm optical zone, with additional 3- and 5-mm assessments to evaluate zone-dependent consistency.

RESULTS

Fifty-six eyes of 56 patients with cataract were included. All anterior, posterior, and total HOAs revealed repeatability limits (R = 2.77 × Sw) below 0.10 µm with ICCs of 0.76 to 0.97 and coefficients of variation less than 25% at 4 mm. For the total cornea, RMS HOA and spherical aberration showed repeatability limits of 0.07 µm (ICC: 0.89) and 0.03 µm (ICC: 0.84), respectively. Test-retest variance scaled with zone size (photopic to scotopic) and interindividual variation.

CONCLUSIONS

Corneal optical quality can be reliably characterized from a SS-OCT biometer at optical zones relevant to refractive cataract surgery. Because measurement uncertainty can impair clinical decision-making, repeatability limits should be considered if wavefront metrics are employed to inform intraocular lens design selection or outcome-based research.