Laser in situ keratomileusis in United States Naval aviators

Purpose To evaluate the safety and efficacy of femtosecond‐assisted wavefront‐guided laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) as well as higher‐order aberrometric changes in a population of active‐duty United States Naval aviators. Setting Navy Refractive Surgery Centers, San Diego, California, and Portsmouth, Virginia, USA. Design Prospective noncomparative 2‐site study. Methods In this study of femtosecond‐assisted wavefront‐guided LASIK, 3 groups were differentiated according to the refractive status: myopia, mixed astigmatism, and hyperopia. Uncorrected (UDVA) and corrected (CDVA) distance visual acuities, refraction, mesopic low‐contrast CDVA, higher‐order aberrations (HOAs), and patient satisfaction were evaluated during a 3‐month follow‐up. Results The study enrolled, treated, and included for analysis 548 eyes with myopia, 60 eyes with mixed astigmatism, and 25 eyes with hyperopia. The UDVA was 20/20 or better in 98.3% of eyes with myopia and mixed astigmatism at all postoperative visits and in 95.7% of hyperopic eyes 3 months postoperatively. The gain in CDVA was 1 or more lines in 39.2%, 41.1%, and 30.4% of myopic, mixed astigmatic and hyperopic eyes, respectively. Loss of 2 lines of CDVA after surgery occurred in 2 myopic eyes (0.4%). At 3 months, a mean change of +0.03 &mgr;m ± 0.10 (SD) and +0.05 ± 0.08 &mgr;m was observed in higher‐order root mean square and primary spherical aberration, respectively. Of the patients, 95.9% said they believed that LASIK had helped their effectiveness as Naval aviators and 99.6% would recommend the same treatment to others. Conclusion Femtosecond‐assisted wavefront‐guided LASIK was an efficacious and safe option for refractive correction in Naval aviators, enabling a quick return to flight status. Financial Disclosure Drs. Tanzer and Schallhorn are consultants to Abbott Medical Optics, Inc. No author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned.