Evaluation Of Corneal Biomechanical Properties In Flight Crew Using Corvis St

To evaluate and compare the corneal biomechanical characteristics of flight crew members (cabin and cockpit personnel) with a healthy, age-matched control group using ultra-high-speed Scheimpflug technology.

Ophthalmology Department, Medipol Mega University Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.

This cross-sectional comparative study included 62 flight personnel (42 cabin crew, 20 cockpit crew) and 62 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Corneal biomechanics were assessed using Corvis ST (Oculus, Wetzlar, Germany). Evaluated parameters included PAKI, CBI, BAD-D, TBI, and Kmax. Refractive status (sphere, cylinder, spherical equivalent) was recorded to control for confounding. Normality was tested with Shapiro–Wilk. Independent samples t-test or Mann–Whitney U test were applied as appropriate. Spearman correlation assessed associations between flight years and biomechanical parameters. Subgroup analysis compared cabin and cockpit crew.

Flight personnel demonstrated significantly higher PAKI (p=0.001), CBI (p<0.001), and TBI (p=0.010) values compared with controls, while BAD-D showed no significant difference (p=0.411). Age, sex distribution, and refractive error were comparable between groups (all p>0.05). No significant correlation was observed between flight years and CBI (r=-0.039, p=0.762), BAD-D (r=0.131, p=0.310), or TBI (r=-0.073, p=0.574). Strong positive correlations were found among biomechanical indices (all p<0.001). No significant differences were detected between cabin and cockpit crew in any biomechanical parameter (all p>0.05).

Flight personnel exhibit subclinical corneal biomechanical alterations in the absence of tomographic ectasia. The lack of association with exposure duration or job type suggests that environmental factors inherent to the flight setting rather than cumulative exposure may influence corneal biomechanics.