[Radial keratotomy in perspective].

Radial keratotomy is a surgical procedure to reduce or eliminate myopia. Advocates of radial keratotomy stress the dependence, inconvenience and restrictions of glasses or contact lenses. However, opponents of this procedure stress that invasive surgery on a healthy eye, regardless of the reason, is unethical. Candidates for radial keratotomy include adults with myopia between -2,00 and -8,00 diopters and who cannot tolerate contact lenses or glasses. The pre-operative evaluation and surgical techniques are briefly discussed. Complications of this procedure include sensitivity to glare, fluctuating vision, perforations, postoperative infections and corneal scarring. Overcorrections and undercorrections may also occur. It is shown that, although radial keratotomy is effective in the low-to-moderate myopia group, its effect in individual eyes is not totally predictable.