DOES THE PROGRESSIVE INCREASING EFFECT OF RADIAL KERATOTOMY (HYPEROPIC SHIFT) CORRELATE WITH UNDETECTED EARLY KERATOCONUS

Keratoconus suspect is a new clinical entity revealed by videokeratogr aphy. We perform systematic videokeratography on all candidates for re fractive surgery, and have identified a keratoconus suspect in more th an 10% of eyes. A lot of patients with undetected early keratoconus ha ve been operated on since 1980. We suggest a possible correlation betw een early keratoconus suspect and the hyperopic shift following radial keratotomy. Our arguments are based on clinical observations, knowled ge about pathogenesis of keratoconus and the mechanism of action of ra dial keratotomy, and epidemiological considerations.