Similarities and differences between the Kelman phacoemulsification and extracapsular cataract extraction procedures in the spontaneous regression of corneal astigmatism from against-the-rule astigmatism.

We perspectively examined the induction and spontaneous regression of corneal astigmatism from preoperative against-the-rule astigmatism [Kelman phacoemulsification (KPE), n = 618; extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE), n = 192] among cataract extraction surgeries (KPE, n = 1,648; ECCE, n = 443). All data were set on a double-angle coordinate graph, from which the mean +/- SE of the axis and the amount of astigmatism were obtained simultaneously. In the KPE group, the surgically induced astigmatism was independent of preoperative state or age. In the ECCE group, surgically induced astigmatism shifted toward with-the-rule astigmatism, and postoperative recovery was delayed longer in patients over 80 years of age than in those under 70. Postoperative against-the-rule astigmatism was more frequent after KPE. Our first trial to calculate astigmatism from a double-angle coordinate graph was useful in showing astigmatism changes.