Introducing a new tool for the assessment of progressive keratoconus: the Scandinavian Keratoconus Progression Application

Abstract

Purpose To develop an application for the Pentacam HR for the purpose of optimising the accuracy of the diagnosis of progressive keratoconus. Methods Measurements were performed on one randomised eye in twenty-five subjects with keratoconus Stage 1-2 according to the Amsler-Krumeich classification on two occasions, three days apart. Four replicate measurements were made by a single examiner on each occasion. The inter-day repeatability and detection limits for the diagnosis of progressive keratoconus were calculated for the following parameters: K2 and Kmax, and the parameters A, B and C from the Belin ABCD Progression Display. The measurements used as input are automatically extracted from the Pentacam HR database as comma-separated values. The application, developed in the R programming environment, provides a web browser-based user interface that presents these parameters both numerically and graphically. Results The application includes detection limits for the diagnosis of progressive keratoconus obtained from two previous studies on the inter-day repeatability of measurements in subjects with keratoconus. The detection limits are based on inter-day repeatability, stratified according to disease severity, allowing the comparison of single measurements or a mean of four replicates. Conclusions This is the first application to provide an assessment of progressive keratoconus using detection limits based on inter-day repeatability. We believe this application will contribute to the more accurate diagnosis of progressive keratoconus. It also facilitates diagnosis and improves the clinical workflow as all the relevant information is presented numerically, graphically, and colour-coded in one interface.