The LADAR6000: results in highly myopic and highly astigmatic eyes

PURPOSE: To investigate the early clinical outcomes of the Alcon LADAR6000 system in treating two difficult patient populations: those with high myopia and those with high astigmatism. METHODS: Two series of eyes were of interest and subsequently enrolled in the study. Thirty-three eyes with preoperative manifest refraction spherical equivalent (MRSE) > -6.00 diopters (D) (high myopia group) and 25 eyes with preoperative myopic astigmatism > -1.50 D (high myopic astigmatism group) were enrolled. Mean patient age was 35 years in the high myopia group and 33 years in the astigmatism group. For the high myopia group, the mean preoperative MRSE was -8.13 D (range: -6.25 to -12.5 D). For the high myopic astigmatism group, the mean preoperative astigmatism was -1.89 D (range: -1.50 to -4.50 D). All LASIK flaps were made using a femtosecond laser with superior hinge position. Stromal ablation was performed using the LADAR6000 system for conventional treatment. All eyes were targeted for emmetropia. RESULTS: Both groups of eyes experienced excellent clinical outcomes with 100% of eyes within +/-1.00 D of attempted correction at 1 month. For the high myopia group, mean postoperative MRSE was -0.10 D at 1 month. For the high myopic astigmatism group, mean postoperative MRSE was -0.06 D at 1 month. CONCLUSIONS: The LADAR6000 system produced excellent early clinical outcomes in two challenging patient groups using LASIK with femtosecond laser flaps.