Abstract

We present a thin shell model of the mammalian cornea in order to study the changes in its shape resulting from refractive surgery (e.g., radial keratotomy or laser keratomileusis). A simple closed-form solution is given for a thin linearly elastic spherical shell model of the cornea. We assume axisymmetry and isotropy in the shell surface. The surgery is modeled by permitting Young’s modulus and shell thickness to depend on position. The analytical nature of the solution permits principal shell curvatures to be explicitly calculated. The model is used to investigate the effect of surgery on change of corneal shape and refractive power and the associated sensitivity to intraocular pressure changes.

© 1991 Optical Society of America