Postoperative change in the corneal thickness of the pseudophakic eye: amplified diurnal variation and consensual increase.

Diurnal variation in the corneal thickness in 53 pseudophakic eyes of 43 patients during the early postoperative period was determined by ultrasonic pachymetry using the Vida 55 unit. The results were as follows: In the operated eye, more prominent diurnal variation was observed than in the contralateral eye. Consensual increase in the corneal thickness was observed. When bilateral implant surgery was performed within a one-week interval, this phenomenon occurred in all the eyes that initially had surgery on the first postoperative day after surgery on the second eye. For long-term follow-up, a single daily measurement between 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM is recommended as an alternative to hourly determinations.