Thermal techniques for reshaping the cornea

The shape of the cornea of the eye can be modified to correct permanently for near-sightedness or far-sightedness. Heat energy can be delivered to the cornea for this purpose in order to elevate the collagen in mid-cornea to its shrinkage temperature of about 60 °C. When a suitable pattern of shrinkage is created in the peripheral cornea, the central cornea may steepen or flatten in response, and this change in curvature may serve as a refractive correction. This paper reviews the following methods for heating the cornea for this purpose: conduction, radio-frequency, laser, and microwave.

[1]  M DeLuca,et al.  Hyperopic thermokeratoplasty: Clinical evaluation , 1991, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[2]  P. Laibson,et al.  Thermokeratoplasty for keratoconus. , 1976, American journal of ophthalmology.

[3]  Michael W. Berns,et al.  Laser refractive surgery: a review and current status , 1995 .

[4]  H Beckman,et al.  Carbon dioxide laser surgery of the eye and adnexa. , 1980, Ophthalmology.

[5]  R. Birngruber,et al.  Continuous-wave diode laser thermokeratoplasty: first clinical experience in blind human eyes. , 1999, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[6]  H. Stringer,et al.  Shrinkage Temperature of Eye Collagen , 1964, Nature.

[7]  R Wang,et al.  New refractive method for laser thermal keratoplasty with the Co:MgF2 laser , 1990, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[8]  D R Sanders,et al.  Effect of thermokeratoplasty on corneal curvature , 1990, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[9]  E. Spörl,et al.  Thermo-mechanisches Verhalten der Hornhaut , 1996 .

[10]  R. T. Mihran.  Interaction of laser radiation with structures of the eye , 1991 .

[11]  S. Muzzin,et al.  Noncontact holmium:YAG laser thermal keratoplasty for hyperopia , 1998, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[12]  J. Doss,et al.  Technique for the selective heating of corneal stroma , 1980 .

[13]  P. Bélanger,et al.  CO2 laser annular thermokeratoplasty: A preliminary study , 1992, Lasers in surgery and medicine.

[14]  A. Gasset,et al.  Thermokeratoplasty (TKP) temperature profile. , 1974, Investigative ophthalmology.

[15]  J D Doss,et al.  Preliminary report of Los Alamos Keratoplasty Techniques. , 1981, Ophthalmology.

[16]  P. McDonnell,et al.  Holmium laser thermokeratoplasty. , 1993, Ophthalmology.

[17]  B.S. Trembly,et al.  Combined microwave heating and surface cooling of the cornea , 1991, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering.

[18]  H. E. MacDermot,et al.  Illustrated Medical Dictionary , 1902, The Indian Medical Gazette.

[19]  G. Peyman,et al.  Modification of rabbit corneal curvature with use of carbon dioxide laser burns. , 1980, Ophthalmic surgery.

[20]  R. Birngruber,et al.  Diode laser thermokeratoplasty: Application strategy and dosimetry , 1998, Journal of cataract and refractive surgery.

[21]  T Kohnen,et al.  Hyperopia correction by noncontact holmium:YAG laser thermal keratoplasty. Clinical study with two-year follow-up. , 1996, Ophthalmology.

[22]  A. Churchill.  The Physiology of the Eye , 1949, The British journal of ophthalmology.

[23]  W Ellis,et al.  Experimental radial thermokeratoplasty in rabbits. , 1990, Archives of ophthalmology.

[24]  M Matallana,et al.  Laser thermokeratoplasty by means of a pulsed holmium:YAG laser for hyperopic correction. , 1990, Refractive & corneal surgery.

[25]  R. H. Keates,et al.  Thermokeratoplasty for keratoconus. , 1975, Ophthalmic surgery.