Long-Term Outcome of Femtosecond Laser-Assisted Keratopigmentation: Using Intacs Channels for Precise Pigment Deposition Within the Cornea.

Purpose: To describe a long-term outcome of a new technique using the femtosecond laser to assist with keratopigmentation (corneal tattooing).

Method: Nineteen eyes of 18 patients with a history of significant visual disability related to iris defects underwent femtosecond laser-assisted keratopigmentation (FAK) for functional restoration of their visual disabilities. Postoperative visual acuity and symptomatic resolution were collected during their postoperative visits.

Results: After FAK surgery, all patients had improvement in their previous visual-related symptoms. Eighteen of 19 eyes (94%) had improvement in their best-corrected Snellen visual acuity. Eight of 19 eyes (42%) had at least 1 line improvement, 8 of 19 eyes (42%) had at least 2 lines of improvement, and 2 of 19 eyes (10%) had at least 3 lines improvement. The average follow-up period was approximately 60 months.

Conclusions: The FAK technique offers a long-term effective and safe technique for visual disabilities and improves visual acuity in patients with various traumatic iris defects.