Relaxing incision for control of postoperative astigmatism following keratoplasty.

A new technique has been presented which provides a second surgical approach to correct excessive residual astigmatism following keratoplasty. The relaxing incision procedure has advantages over wedge resection in that it can be performed at the slit lamp, it gives no initial overcorrection, and it has a much shorter postoperative course while giving rapid results without suturing. Since this technique does not appear to produce significant hyperopia and may produce a tendency toward myopia, the corneal surgeon would thus have alternative techniques from which to choose, depending, in part, on the spherical component of the refraction.