Table 3. Summary of keratometric outcomes (Kmax flattening, stabilization rate) from representative studies on conventional Dresden cross-linking protocols in progressive keratoconus.
A-CXL: accelerated corneal cross-linking; CXL: corneal collagen cross-linking; D: diopter; Kmax: maximum keratometry (the steepest corneal curvature measurement in diopters); NS: not significant (p-value > 0.05)
| Study | CXL Protocol | Kmax Change | Comparison | Timepoint | Stabilization Rate |
| Wittig-Silva et al., 2014 [36] | Dresden | -1.03 ± 0.19 D (p < 0.001) | vs Control: +1.75 (p < 0.001) | 3 years | 100% vs 60% |
| Strmeňová et al., 2015 [34] | Dresden | -0.97 D (p < 0.01) | NR | 2 years | 97% |
| Seyedian et al., 2015 [32] | Dresden | -0.22 ± 0.6 D (p < 0.05) | vs Control: +0.41 D (p < 0.01) | 1 year | 88% vs 62% |
| Choi et al., 2017 [16] | Dresden | -0.55 ± 0.89 D (p < 0.05) | vs A-CXL: no change (p < 0.05) | 6 months | 100% vs 100% |
| Bhattacharyya et al., 2019 [15] | Dresden | -1.63 D (NS) | vs Control: increased (NS) | 6 months | 90% vs 0% |
| Ferdi et al. (Registry), 2023 [2] | Dresden | -3.7 D (p < 0.001) | NR | 5 years | 93% |
| Stojanovic et al., 2014 [58] | Dresden | -1.8 ± 1.4 D (p < 0.05) | vs A-CXL: +1.2 D (p < 0.05) | 5 years | 88% vs 74% |