Theoretical analysis of peripheral imaging after excimer laser corneal refractive surgery for myopia.

PURPOSE: To explore theoretically the retinal point images in the peripheral fields of eyes that have had excimer laser refractive surgery. University research laboratory. METHODS: Model eyes were based on Navarro's finite schematic eye, the eyes being made myopic by an increase in axial length. To simulate photorefractive keratectomy (PRK), the anterior shape and thickness of the cornea were modified. Variables included pupil size, ablation zone size, preexisting refractive error, and the addition of a blending zone. Image-quality criteria for each retinal point image were its size and the angular separation of the centroids of those parts of the image produced by rays passing through ablated and unablated corneal zones. RESULTS: In the peripheral visual field, the boundary between the ablated and unablated cornea caused a separation of the retinal image of a single point into 2 parts. The separation increased with the preexisting refractive error. Image quality was correspondingly reduced by ablation. As pupil size increased, the field angle at which the retinal image doubling first occurred decreased. Increasing the diameter of the ablation zone or using a blending zone increased the angle at which the doubling first occurred, and the blending zone improved image quality considerably. Chromatic effects appeared to be relatively unimportant. CONCLUSIONS: This analysis provides further evidence of the disadvantages of small central ablation zones in excimer laser refractive surgery and of the advantages of well-designed blending zones in improving postsurgical peripheral image quality. Image quality in the peripheral field of the pseudoemmetropic post-PRK eye is generally worse than in a naturally emmetropic eye, even though the axial image quality may be similar.