Evaluation of axial length/total corneal refractive power ratio as a potential marker for ocular diagnosis of Marfan’s syndrome in children

AIM:To investigate whether the axial length(AL)/total corneal refractive power(TCRP)ratio is a sensitive and simple factor that can be used for the early diagnosis of Marfan’s syndrome(MFS)in children.METHODS:The relationship between the AL/TCRP ratio and the diagnosis of MFS for 192 eyes in 97 children were evaluate.The biological characteristics,including age,sex,AL,and TCRP,were collected from medical records.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis was performed to investigate whether the AL/TCRP ratio effectively distinguishes MFS from other subjects.The Youden index was used to re-divide the whole population into two groups according to an AL/TCRP ratio of 0.59.RESULTS:Of 96 subjects(mean age 7.46±3.28 y)evaluated,56(110 eyes)had a definite diagnosis of MFS in childhood based on the revised Ghent criteria,41(82 eyes)with diagnosis of congenital ectopia lentis(EL)were included as a control group.AL was negatively correlated with TCRP,with a linear regression coefficient of-0.36(R2=0.08).A significant correlation was found between age and the AL/TCRP ratio(P=0.023).ROC curve analysis showed that the AL/TCRP ratio distinguished MFS from the other patients at a threshold of 0.59.MFS patients were present in 24/58(41.38%)patients with an AL/TCRP ratio of≤0.59 and in 34/39(87.18%)patients with an AL/TCRP ratio of>0.59.CONCLUSION:An AL/TCRP ratio of>0.59 is significantly associated with the risk of MFS.The AL/TCRP ratio should be measured as a promising marker for the prognosis of children MFS.Changes in the AL/TCRP ratio should be monitored over time.

A novel analysis of Scheimpflug total corneal refractive power following corneal cross-linking in mild to moderate keratoconus

AIM:To detect an earlier improvement in mild to moderate keratoconus following corneal cross-linking(CXL)with total corneal refractive power(TCRP)using ray tracing method.METHODS:A total of 40 eyes of 30 consecutive patients who underwent CXL for progressive keratoconus were retrospectively enrolled.The following keratometric parameters provided by Pentacam HR,including maximum keratometry(Kmax),steepest keratometry(Ksteep),3 mm zonal TCRP centered over corneal apex(TCRPapex,zone 3 mm),zonal mean keratometry and TCRP centered over corneal cone(Kmcone,zone and TCRPcone,zone 1,2,3 mm)were evaluated preoperatively and 1,3,6,and 12 mo postoperatively.Groups 1 and 2 were defined based on Kmax at postoperative 1 mo as improved(the initial improvement group)or worsen(the initial deterioration group)compared to the preoperative level.RESULTS:In the overall group,only keratometric parameters based on ray tracing method displayed significant improvement early at 3 mo postoperatively,in which TCRPcone,zone 1 mm and 2 mm exhibited the largest flattening(0.57 D and 0.53 D,respectively).In Group 1,only Kmax,Kmcone,zone 2 mm and TCRPcone,zone 2 mm showed significant improvement initially at 1 mo postoperatively,in which Kmax exhibited the largest improvement(1.05 D),followed by TCRPcone,zone 2 mm(0.82 D).In Group 2,only keratometric parameters based on ray tracing method and Kmcone,zone 3 mm showed slight but not significant improvement early at 3 mo,in which TCRPcone,zone 3 mm displayed the most improvement(0.19 D),followed by TCRPcone,zone 2 mm(0.15 D).CONCLUSION:The findings indicate that a 2 mm zonal TCRP centered over Kmax could earlier detect keratometric improvement by CXL compared to other commonly used parameters in mild to moderate keratoconic eyes.