Comparison of Early Changes in Ocular Surface and Inflammatory Mediators between Femtosecond Lenticule Extraction and Small-Incision Lenticule Extraction

PurposeTo evaluate the short-term changes in ocular surface measures and tear inflammatory mediators after femtosecond lenticule extraction (FLEx) and small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) procedures.MethodsEighteen subjects (18 eyes) underwent FLEx and 23 subjects (23 eyes) underwent SMILE in this single-center and prospective study. Central corneal sensitivity, Schirmer I test (SIT), noninvasive tear breakup time (NI-TBUT), tear meniscus height, corneal fluorescein (FL) staining, and ocular surface disease index (OSDI) were assessed in all patients. Concentrations of interleukin-1α (IL-1α), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), nerve growth factor (NGF), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) in collected tears were measured by multiplex antibody microarray.ResultsCentral corneal sensitivity was reduced in both groups, but the scores in the SMILE group were higher than those in the FLEx group at all time points postoperatively (PConclusionSMILE has superiority over FLEx in early ocular surface changes and NGF, TGF-β1 and IL-1α may contribute to the process of ocular surface recovery.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02540785