Femtosecond Laser-Assisted LASIK in Children With Hyperopia and Anisometropic Amblyopia: 7 Years of Follow-up.

PURPOSE: To analyze clinical and functional results of femtosecond laser-assisted laser in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK) in children with hyperopia and unilateral anisometropic amblyopia. METHODS: The study included 24 patients (24 eyes) aged 5 to 15 years. Before the surgery, the mean manifest refractive spherical equivalent (MRSE) of amblyopic eyes was +3.90 +/- 1.60 diopters (D) (range: +1.50 to +6.80 D) and the mean refractive anisometropia was 3.06 +/- 1.64 D (range: 0.87 to 7.50 D). Every patient had at least 1 year of ineffective traditional amblyopia treatment before surgery. The mean follow-up period was 7 years (range: 6.9 to 7.4 years). RESULTS: At the final follow-up visit, the mean MRSE of operated eyes was +0.41 +/- 1.35 D (range: -1.13 to +3.88 D) (P <.001) and anisometropia in MRSE notation was 1.39 +/- 1.15 D (range: 0.00 to 4.63 D). Postoperative spherical equivalent was within +/- 0.50, +/- 1.00, and +/- 2.00 D in 31%, 38%, and 92%, respectively. There were no complications. All patients showed a one to seven line gain of corrected distance visual acuity. CONCLUSIONS: FS-LASIK was an effective method of hyperopia correction in this cohort of children with amblyopia, resulting in reduction in anisometropia, restoration of refractive balance, and functional improvement in the amblyopic eye when traditional methods failed.