Acute Corneal Hydrops is a disease of the eyes in which there is stromal edema. This is due to the leakage of aqueous solution as tear from the descemet membrane. There are two treatments of this condition that are considered to be effective i.e. intracameral air injection and thermokeratoplasty.However the study of comparison of both the methods was lacking.
The sample of 20 patients who are suffering from keratoconus were taken and were randomly assigned to receive CSAI or TKP for the treatment of their condition. They were observed and followed up for a period of six months after receiving the treatment.
Both the groups were similar in demographics and corneal oedema resolved within 2 weeks for both the groups. The maximum thickness of the corneal scars following both treatments was not significantly different. Best spectacle-corrected visual acuity was superior in the CSAI group at 6-month follow-up (CSAI vs TKP, 0.52 (0.37, 0.85) vs 0.96 (0.70, 1.34) LogMAR, p=0.042). CSAI resulted in greater corneal endothelial cell density (CSAI vs TKP, 2677.8±326.7 vs 1955.3±298.1 cells/mm2, p<0.001) and flatter corneal curvature (CSAI vs TKP: mean keratometry value, 52.13±4.92 vs 63.51±5.83D, p<0.001; maximum keratometry value, 65.21±7.42 vs 77.13±12.01D, p=0.016) at the 6-month follow-up.
The study concluded that CSAI was associated with superior clinical outcomes although both the treatments resulted in resolution of the disease.
Reference: https://bjo.bmj.com/content/early/2020/10/02/bjophthalmol-2020-316414
