Effect of Continuous Suture upon Postoperative Corneal Astigmatism Following Cataract Extraction

Abstract

The analytic study of postoperative change in corneal astigmatism in 65 patients (78 eyes.) that had extracapsular cataract extraction with posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation was conducted. All patients were performed by one surgeon and the same surgical technique between July 1992 and June 1993. Keratometric measurements at the visual axis were performed preoperatively and two months postoperatively. The mean values for preoperative astigmatism were + 0.003 dioptres and that for postoperative astigmatism were + 0.545 dioptres. There were significant mean increase in with-the-rule astigmatism for double running continuous suture postoperatively (P = 0.01). The surgically induced corneal astigmatism was + 0.542 dioptres.