A Multicenter Study of the Distribution Pattern of Posterior-To-Anterior Corneal Curvature Radii Ratio in Chinese Myopic Patients

Abstract

Estimation of corneal refractive power (CRP) is of crucial importance to refractive and cataract surgery. The ratio of posterior to anterior curvature radii of the cornea (P/A ratio) is one of the key factors to determine the actual CRP (True-K). While the traditional method to calculate the CRP (Sim-K) is based on a constant P/A ratio (0.82), it is suggested that the P/A ratio varies in different people and exhibits a distribution pattern, which may have an impact on the accuracy of CRP estimation and postoperative refractive outcome. In this multicenter study, we aimed to investigate the distribution pattern of the P/A ratio in a large number of myopic patients, and further explore the relationship between P/A ratio and ΔK (the difference between True-K and Sim-K). We found that distribution of the P/A ratio ranged from 0.72 to 0.86 with an average value of 0.82 ± 0.01. The compensation effect of the refractive power of the posterior on the anterior surface of the cornea decreased with the increase of P/A ratio. There was a significant correlation between P/A ratio and ΔK in all eyes (r = 0.9764, P < 0.0001). A change of 0.1 in P/A ratio could cause a change of 0.75 D in ΔK. Our study suggests that the actual P/A ratio should be taken into consideration in refractive and cataract surgery when calculating the CRP and power of the intraocular lens in eyes with significantly deviated P/A ratios.