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CHANGE IN AC/A RATIO AFTER BILATERAL LASIK IN ORTHOTROPIA2055absent or impaired binocular vision and those in whichmonovision was planned were not included in the study.The preoperative evaluation included Early TreatmentDiabetic Retinopathy Study visual acuity, cycloplegic refractionunder homatropine 2%, assessment of binocularity usingsynoptophore-based tests, and the prism cover test fora 6/6 fixation target. Assessment of the stimulus AC/A ratiowas performed using the gradient method described by VonNoorden and Campos. 4 All patients had LASIK on the Zyoptixplatform using the Technolas IIz system and XP microkeratome(Bausch & Lomb). Both eyes were treated during thesame session.The postoperative assessment included uncorrected andbest corrected visual acuities, residual refraction, and theAC/A ratio. Symptoms related to asthenopia and difficultiesin near work after LASIK were assessed. Asthenopia wasassessed using a questionnaire based on assessment ofsymptoms and their relative grading. Occasional difficultyonly after prolonged reading or near work was considereda mild symptom. Symptoms that did not arise during dayto day near work but were bothersome on sustained accommodativeor convergent activity (eg, working on a monitor,reading fine print) were considered moderate asthenopia.Persistent asthenopia requiring cessation of all near work relatedactivity was considered a severe symptom. In addition,the patient was asked to write down nonspecific symptomsand those not listed on the questionnaire. Dry eyes, postoperativeastigmatism, or other symptoms simulating asthenopiawere ruled out.The data were analyzed using SPSS software (version13.0, SPSS, Inc.). The analysis of variance (ANOVA) testwas used to compare the change in the AC/A ratio after surgery.The Tukey honestly significant difference (HSD) testwas used for intergroup comparison. The chi-square testwas used for comparison of qualitative data.RESULTSAll patients were followed for 9 months. The mean ageof the 26 men and 35 women was 23.16 years G 2.51(SD) (range 19 to 29 years). The mean spherical equivalent(SE) was 3.69 G 2.52 diopters (D) in the righteye and 3.93 G 2.32 D in the left eye. The mean interpupillarydistance was 63.42 G 2.71 mm. The mean residualSE at 9 months was 0.43 G 0.23 D in the righteye and 0.25 G 0.34 D in the left eye.Accepted for publication July 26, 2007.From the Cornea and Refractive Surgery Services, Rajendra PrasadCentre for Ophthalmic Sciences, All India Institute of MedicalSciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, India.No author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material ormethod mentioned.Corresponding author: Jeewan Singh Titiyal, MD, Professor andHead, Cornea, Refractive Surgery and Cataract Services, RajendraPrasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences, All India Institute ofMedical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi–110029, India. E-mail:titiyal@rediffmail.com.Table 1. The AC/A ratios before and after LASIK.AC/A Ratio (deg/D)Exam Mean G SD Median Minimum MaximumBefore LASIK 3.63 G 1.79 3.93 0.90 6.13Postoperative1 week 4.57 G 1.12 4.80 1.10 6.301 month 6.54 G 1.05 6.60 4.40 11.073 months 4.05 G 1.16 4.30 0.77 5.936 months 4.11 G 1.09 4.30 0.83 5.669 months 4.16 G1.10 4.40 0.77 6.00AC/A Z accommodative convergence per unit of accommodation;LASIK Z laser in situ keratomileusisAccommodative Convergence per Unitof Accommodation RatioPreoperative The preoperative AC/A ratio was3.637 deg/D (Table 1). There was no significant correlationbetween the ratio and refractive error, age, or sex.Postoperative Table 2 shows the results of the between-groupcomparisons. There was a significantdecrease in the mean AC/A ratio 1 week after LASIK(P Z .001, post hoc Tukey HSD). At 1 month, the meanAC/A ratio was still significantly lower than beforeLASIK (P Z .000, post hoc Tukey HSD). At 3 months,the mean AC/A ratio was comparable to the preoperativevalue (P Z .496, post hoc Tukey HSD). No significantdifference in the AC/A ratio was seen at 6 or9 months, suggesting stabilization of the accommodation–convergencerelationship.Asthenopic SymptomsOne week after LASIK, 44 patients had at least mildasthenopic symptoms. By the end of 1 month, 27 patientshad symptoms. At the 6-month follow-up, 2patients had mild symptoms of asthenopia; the restwere asymptomatic. No patient was symptomatic at9 months. There was a significant reduction in thenumber of symptomatic patients from the first monthonward (chi square Z 89.23; P!.001).DISCUSSIONIn this study, we analyzed the change in the AC/A ratioin orthotropic myopic patients who had bilateralLASIK. The assessment of this correlation betweenthe accommodative stimulus and convergence is importantbecause LASIK is not just a refractive procedure;it also alters the amount of accommodativeresponse required in day-to-day activities comparedto that with spectacle correction. The binocular interactionrequired for day-to-day activities is differentJ CATARACT REFRACT SURG - VOL 33, DECEMBER 2007
2056 CHANGE IN AC/A RATIO AFTER BILATERAL LASIK IN ORTHOTROPIATable 2. Results of between-group comparisons.*Post Hoc TestPre LASIK vs1 weekPre LASIK vs1 monthPre LASIK vs3 monthsPre LASIK vs6 monthsPre LASIK vs9 monthsDifferenceof MeanConfidence IntervalP Value(Tukey HSD) Lower Upper0.94 .000 1.60 0.272.9 .000 3.57 2.240.42 .49 1.08 0.240.48 .33 1.14 0.180.52 .22 1.18 0.13HSD Z honestly significant difference; LASIK Z laser in situkeratomileusis*Between-group ANOVA comparison, P Z .000between myopic patients and emmetropic patients.Because the far point in myopia is between infinityand the near point, the accommodative effort requiredfor near vision is lower than in emmetropia, in whichthe far point is at infinity. However, when myopia iscorrected by a refractive procedure, the accommodation–convergencerelationship should follow the patternsof emmetropia. This study questioned whetherthe above hypothesis is true and if so, what the expectedtime frame is for these adjustments in the accommodation–convergencearc.We found an initial decrease in the AC/A ratio inthe early postoperative period. The probable reasonis an increased accommodative effort to produce thesame amount of convergence in the newly inducedemmetropic state.The increased AC/A ratio 1 month after surgeryprovides further evidence of the unstable accommodation–convergencerelationship. As the quality of accommodationeffort improves with adjustment to thenew emmetropic state, the amount of convergenceproduced per unit of accommodation probably increases.This could have resulted in the higher AC/Aratio at 1 month. With time, the AC/A ratio progressivelydecreased to stabilize between 3 months and6 months after surgery. This suggests that the maximumvariation in the accommodation–convergencerelationship after LASIK occurs within the first3 months.Earlier studies 5,6 show that the AC/A ratios in emmetropicpatients are lower than those in myopicpatients. Therefore, it can be concluded that the emmetropiacreated by LASIK tends to simulate the accommodation–convergencerelationship in naturallyemmetropic eyes. A change in the AC/A ratio can predictmyopia. 7 It remains to be seen whether regressionafter LASIK for myopia follows a similar pattern.In conclusion, our study evaluated the changes inthe accommodation–convergence relationship afterLASIK. We found the AC/A ratio gradually returnedto near preoperative values. This could explain someof the postoperative symptoms in the absence of grossastigmatism, flap, and ocular surface complications.This study provides evidence of a transient change inthe AC/A ratio after LASIK surgery, most of which occursin the initial months, and that the ratio stabilizesby 3 to 6 months. Larger studies are required to assessthe changes in the AC/A ratio in patients with regressionafter LASIK. It would also be worthwhile to evaluatewhether the results are different after surfaceablation procedures, in which wound-healing patternsare different and epithelial haze (and thus blurring andmore accommodative stimulus) can occur, andwhether sparing the corneal nerves causes a differentAC/A ratio response.REFERENCES1. Semmlow J, Putteman A, Vercher J-L, et al. Surgical modificationof the AC/A ratio and the binocular alignment (‘‘phoria’’) at distance;its influence on accommodative esotropia: a study of 21cases. Binocul Vis Strabismus Q 2000; 15:121–1302. Lucas E, Bentley CR, Aclimandos WA. The effect of surgery onthe AC/A ratio. Eye 1994; 8:109–1143. Ciuffreda KJ, Rosenfield M, Chen H-W. The AC/A ratio, age andpresbyopia. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 1997; 17:307–3154. Von Noorden GK, Campos EC, eds. Binocular Vision and OcularMotility; Theory and Management of Strabismus, 6th ed. St Louis,MO, Mosby, 2002; 91–925. Rosenfield M, Gilmartin B. Effect of a near-vision task on theresponse AC/A of a myopic population. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt1987; 7:225–2336. Gwiazda J, Grice K, Thorn F. Response AC/A ratios are elevatedin myopic children. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 1999; 19:173–1797. Gwiazda J, Thorn F, Held R. Accommodation, accommodativeconvergence, and response AC/A ratios before and at the onsetof myopia in children. Optom Vis Sci 2005; 82:273–278First author:Gaurav Prakash, MDCornea and Refractive Surgery Services,Rajendra Prasad Centre for OphthalmicSciences, All India Institute of MedicalSciences, New Delhi, IndiaJ CATARACT REFRACT SURG - VOL 33, DECEMBER 2007
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