Continuous-light versus pulsed-light accelerated corneal crosslinking with ultraviolet-A and riboflavin

Purpose To determine whether the pulsed-light ultraviolet-A (UVA) accelerated corneal crosslinking (CXL) procedure is more efficacious and selective than its continuous-light counterpart in rabbits. Setting School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China. Design Experimental study. Methods Fifty-four rabbits were divided into 2 groups. Group 1 had continuous-light accelerated CXL using 9 mW/cm 2 UVA for 10 minutes (5.4 J/cm 2 ). Group 2 had pulsed-light accelerated CXL by exposing them to 9 mW/cm 2 UVA for 20 minutes (1 second on/1 second off). Corneal stromal demarcation line depth, in vivo confocal microscopic analysis, biomechanical stiffness, endothelial cell density, and keratocyte apoptosis were measured after performing these CXL procedures. Results The mean stromal demarcation line depth was 254.7 μm ± 47.4 (SD) in Group 1 and 341.1 ± 36.1 μm in Group 2 ( P P Conclusion The pulsed-light accelerated CXL protocol was less injurious and more efficacious at inducing CXL than the continuous-light accelerated CXL protocol in rabbit corneas.