Effects of corneal irregular astigmatism on visual acuity after conventional and femtosecond laser-assisted Descemet’s stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty

Purpose To compare short-term outcomes of Descemet’s stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) using a graft prepared with either a femtosecond laser or a microkeratome. Methods Thirty-eight patients underwent DSAEK with grafts prepared with either a femtosecond laser (f-DSAEK; 21 eyes) or a microkeratome (m-DSAEK; 17 eyes). Visual acuity, endothelial cell density, regular astigmatism and irregular astigmatism were compared between the two groups preoperatively and at 1, 3, and 6 months post-operatively. Fourier analysis was conducted to calculate astigmatism of the anterior and posterior surfaces, and total cornea, using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). Results Visual acuity (logMAR) improved from 1.20 ± 0.60 to 0.43 ± 0.25 after m-DSAEK ( P