| Summary: | Duangratn Niruthisard,1 Wasee Tulvatana,1 Vannarut Satitpitakul2 1Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University and King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, Thailand; 2Center of Excellence for Cornea and Stem Cell Transplantation, Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University and King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, ThailandCorrespondence: Vannarut SatitpitakulCenter of Excellence for Cornea and Stem Cell Transplantation, Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University and King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, 1873 Rama 4 Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok, 10330, ThailandTel +66 894959022Email Vannarut.s@chula.ac.thPurpose: To determine the percentage of eyes with corneal astigmatic power stability and mean corneal keratometric power at 6-month post-pterygium excision, and to identify the time, and the associated factors, required to achieve stability.Methods: This prospective observational study enrolled patients undergoing pterygium excision. Patients were evaluated for baseline characteristics and keratometric data before and every month after pterygium excision for six months using IOL Master 500® (Carl Zeiss, Meditec). Clinically stable corneal astigmatic power and keratometric power were, respectively, defined as changes in these parameters of less than 0.25 and 0.27 diopters after two consecutive visits. Time to corneal astigmatic and keratometric power stability, as well as factors associated with the stability, were analyzed.Results: Forty percent and 73.3% of eyes, respectively, demonstrated corneal astigmatic and corneal keratometric stability at six months post-operation. Within three months of reaching initial stability, the corneal astigmatic power and the mean keratometric power showed instability in 46.7% and 27.3% of patients, respectively. No patients with keratometric stability for more than three months became unstable during the study period. The extension of pterygium exceeding 3.0 mm was associated with a delay in time to corneal astigmatic stability (HRadjusted 0.41; 95% CI 0.19– 0.89; P= 0.02).Conclusion: According to the clinical relevance, 40% and 73% of patients, respectively, presented corneal astigmatic and keratometric stability within six months post-operation. Patients with a pterygium extension of more than 3 mm required a longer time for corneal astigmatic stability. It is recommended that keratometric stability be achieved for at least three months before commencing with additional procedures.Keywords: pterygium, corneal curvature, keratometry, astigmatism
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