[New developments in the treatment of keratoconus]

Abstract

The results of penetrating and lamellar keratoplasty in patients with keratoconus are communicated. In penetrating keratoplasty the graft healed clear in 93.5% of the cases treated (266 operations). A new method of surgical treatment of acute total keratoconus by "biological covering" with a lamellar corneal graft is proposed, which enables the process to stabilize, the eye to be saved, and in isolated cases a visual acuity of 0.5 or more to be achieved. The authors describe a new trend in studying the pathogenesis of keratoconus on the basis of biochemical investigations of the damaged areas of the cornea (lowering of the activity of enzymes of the antioxidant system and reduction in tocopherol content). A new method of conservative treatment for the initial forms of keratoconus using phonophoresis of Vitamin E (tocopherol) is proposed on the basis of the data gathered in the biochemical investigations.