Background: The postoperative use of topical corticosteroids may decrease the risk for regression and thereby improve the refractive outcome following radial keratotomy.
Methods: Twenty patients with identical preoperative refractions in each eye underwent bilateral radial keratotomy in one sitting. One eye was treated with dexamethasone twice daily for 3 months postoperatively; the fellow eye was not.
Results: Three months postoperatively, there was no difference between the refractions of the two groups of eyes.
Conclusion: The use of topical dexamethasone after radial keratotomy for 3 months does not improve the refractive outcome.