Long-Term Outcome of Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Keratopigmentation: Using Intacs Channels for Precise Pigment Deposition Within the Cornea.

PURPOSE: To describe a long-term outcome of a new technique using the femtosecond laser to assist with keratopigmentation (corneal tattooing).

METHOD: Nineteen eyes of 18 patients with a history of significant visual disability related to iris defects underwent femtosecond laser-assisted keratopigmentation (FAK) for functional restoration of their visual disabilities. Postoperative visual acuity and symptomatic resolution were collected during their postoperative visits.

RESULTS

After FAK surgery, all patients had improvement in their previous visual-related symptoms. Eighteen of 19 eyes (94%) had improvement in their best-corrected Snellen visual acuity. Eight of 19 eyes (42%) had at least 1 line improvement, 8 of 19 eyes (42%) had at least 2 lines of improvement, and 2 of 19 eyes (10%) had at least 3 lines improvement. The average follow-up period was approximately 60 months.

CONCLUSIONS

The FAK technique offers a long-term effective and safe technique for visual disabilities and improves visual acuity in patients with various traumatic iris defects.