First multicenter survey on infectious keratitis following excimer laser surgery in Japan

PurposeTo report the first multicenter survey in Japan on infectious keratitis after excimer laser surgery.MethodsThe laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) Safety Network (LSN) Committee sent questionnaires to 28 LSN member hospitals to assess the total number of laser corneal surgeries, the number of infection cases (including suspicious cases), and the postoperative follow-up rate during a 3-year period.ResultsResponses were obtained from 27 (96.4%) of 28 institutions. One phototherapeutic keratectomy infection case was reported among 22,415 excimer laser surgery cases, which equates to an incidence rate of 0.004%. The follow-up rate was 94.14% (67.2–100%), 80.11% (41.0–96.1%), 57.95% (11.5–93.0%), and 46.64% (4.7–93.0%) at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months of follow-up, respectively.ConclusionInfectious keratitis is a potentially devastating complication of excimer laser surgery. We did not see any infectious keratitis for refractive cases. This first multicenter survey in Japan on infectious keratitis provides important information on the safety of this therapy.