Manually Performed Limbal Relaxing Incisions vs Femtosecond Laser-guided Astigmatic Keratotomy

Astigmatic keratotomy (AK) is used to treat numerous refractive disorders, including congenital astigmatism, residual corneal astigmatism at the time of or following cataract surgery, post-traumatic astigmatism, and astigmatism after corneal transplantation. Within the past few years, much consideration has been given to an evolutionary variant of the procedure, the limbal relaxing incision (LRI). By moving the incision farther to the periphery, cataract surgeons can safely and predictably remediate mild to moderate amounts of regular astigmatism at the time of cataract surgery by performing this incisional technique. Recent technological developments have shifted ophthalmologist's attention from manually created LRIs and astigmatic keratotomy procedures to femtosecond laser-guided procedures. Femtosecond lasers offer superior incisional accuracy and reproducibility coupled with minimal effects on collateral tissues, achieving levels of safety and reproducibility exceeding those of mechanical techniques. A major clinical application of the femtosecond laser is for creating arcuate incisions that have a precise and accurate length, depth, angular position, and optical zone.