Background: The majority of alterations in the ocular system arise from metabolic, hormonal, and immunologic changes provoked by pregnancy. Some of these alterations might contribute to the initiation of new ocular conditions, and others may result in exaggeration, resolution, or improvement of previously established conditions. These effects occur mostly due to the interaction of estrogen and progesterone with their counterpart receptors in eye tissues.
Objective: To evaluate corneal tomographic changes during pregnancy and after delivery.
Patients and methods: This was a prospective study that included 20 eyes of 10 pregnant female subjects. All subjects underwent complete ophthalmic examination including visual acuity assessment, slit-lamp biomicroscopy, intraocular pressure measurement, fundus examination, and corneal tomography using Sirius tomography (CSO, Italy) at KafrEl-SheikhOphthalmologyHospital during the period from October 2020 to March 2021.
Results: There were statistically significant UCVA changes between pre-partum (0.720 ± 0.167) and post-partum (0.770 ± 0.130) conditions. There were statistically significant corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) changes between pre-partum (0.930± 0.092) and post-partum (0.980 ± 0.052). There statistically significant IOP changes between pre-partum (15.750 ± 2.403) and post-partum (18.250 ± 2.074) condition. There were statistically significant K2 changes between pre partum (44.556± 1.416) and post-partum (44.024 ± 1.718) conditions. There were statistically significant average K changes between pre-partum (44.178±1.409) and post-partum (43.732±1.682) conditions. There were statistically significant anterior chamber depth changes between pre partum (3.118 ± 0.358) and post-partum (2.999 ± 0.255) conditions. However, there were no statistically significant changes in K1, K Max, TCT, CCT, AE, PE and ACA from pre-partum to post-partum conditions.
Conclusion: No refractive surgery procedures performed during pregnancy till at least three months after delivery, because of the variability of the refractive state of the eye during this period.