One-Year Prospective Contralateral Eye Study: Visual Outcomes of Topography-guided LASIK Versus KLEx for Myopia and Myopic Astigmatism

PURPOSE: To compare 12-month visual outcomes, higher order aberrations (HOAs), epithelial remodeling patterns, and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) between topography-guided laser in situ keratomileusis (TG-LASIK) and keratorefractive lenticule extraction (KLEx). METHODS: Forty patients (80 eyes) underwent TG-LASIK in one eye and KLEx in the fellow eye for myopia with and without astigmatism. Preoperative and up to 12-month evaluations included uncorrected distance visual acuity (UDVA), corrected distance visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, HOAs, corneal epithelial analysis, corneal hysteresis (CH), corneal resistance factor (CRF), and PROs. At 12 months, there was no difference in subjective and objective dry eye symptoms between groups. CONCLUSIONS: KLEx resulted in greater vertical coma, stromal consumption per diopter, and undercorrected cylinder. Although early differences in PROs, eye preference, and contrast sensitivity transiently favored TG-LASIK, both procedures were comparable in terms of stability, predictability, CH, CRF, and patient satisfaction at 12 months.