Macular Phototoxicity After Corneal Cross-Linking

• Grant number: 15/23237-1
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: April 01, 2016
• End date: March 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Eduardo Leite Arieta
• Grantee: Carlos Eduardo Leite Arieta
• Host Institution: Hospital de Clínicas (HC). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Keratoconus is a degenerative disorder characterized by thinning of paracentral cornea and the presence of irregular astigmatism. It is a typically bilateral and asymmetrical condition, without preference for race or gender, that develops at puberty and progresses for about 10 to 20 years when presenting stabilization of the clinical picture. The treatment of keratoconus is based on the severity and extent of the irregular astigmatism and aims at improvement of visual acuity without, however, preventing the progression of the disease. The advent of Cross-linking with riboflavin and UVA light (CXL) has revolutionized the treatment of keratoconus to be a method to stop its progression. In the procedure, riboflavin (vitamin B2) absorbs UV light with a wavelength of 370nm and acts as a photo sensitizer which produces oxygen free radicals. These free radicals induce the formation of new crosslinks between the collagen fibers and fibrils which, in turn, increased the corneal rigidity and decrease and in some cases interrupt the progression of keratoconus.However, it is known that UV radiation is cytotoxic and generates oxygen reactive species that are potentially harmful to intraocular structures as endothelial cells, lens and retina. Although there are many studies on the effects of CXL in the anterior segment of the eye, the literature is poor in describing the possible retinal changes resulting from this procedure and, in spite of this fact, two distinct layers of the retina are highly susceptible to photochemical damage: the outer segments photoreceptors and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE).Thus, the aim of this study is to evaluate structurally and functionally the macular region after the therapeutic use of CXL in patients with keratoconus. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

TAGLIARI BARBISAN, PAULO RODOLFO; MONTEIRO VITURINO, MARINA GONCALVES; SILVEIRA SOUTO, FERNANDA MARIA; TIAN, BO; PACHECO PINTO, ROBERTO DAMIAN; QUAGLIATO, LUCAS BARASNEVICIUS; NASCIMENTO, MAURICIO ABUJAMRA; DE CASTRO, OSANE SILVESTRE; LEITE ARIETA, CARLOS EDUARDO. Macular phototoxicity after corneal cross-linking. CLINICAL OPHTHALMOLOGY, v. 12, p. 1801-1807, 2018. (15/23237-1)