Objective:

To determine corneal aberrometric parameters for the detection of subclinical keratoconus.

Methods:

An observational, analytical, cross-sectional study was performed including 36 patients with subclinical keratoconus (study group) and 36 students with apparently healthy corneas (control group), who attended the cornea consultation at the Cuban Institute of Ophthalmology Ramón Pando Ferrer, between May 2018 and June 2022. Corneal topography and aberrometry were analyzed with the Pentacam AXL corneal tomographer.

Results:

The subclinical keratoconus group showed similar values for keratometry, corneal asphericity, pachymetry and total deviation value compared to the normal group. There were statistically significant differences in aberrometric parameters, such as coma at 90° (Z3-1), and root mean square of high-order anterior, posterior and total corneal aberrations in subclinical keratoconus compared to the normal group. The 90° posterior coma presented a higher area under the curve (0.894) within the aberrometries, with a cutoff point of -0.013 μm, with sensitivity of 86.1 % and specificity of 88.9 %.

Conclusions:

Coma posterior to 90º (aberrometric parameter) presents high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of subclinical keratoconus, using Pentacam AXL tomographic analysis.