Purpose:
To measure the cell density of the corneal endothelium in glaucomatouseyes (a) at diagnosis and (b) after longterm medical therapy
Methods:
A first cohort of 126 consecutive eyes , scheduled for cataractsurgery and urrently treated with multidose topical hypotensivedrugs , were selected for the study and matched by age withcontrol eyes. A second cohort of 56 untreated newly diagnosedglaucomatous eyes was matche dby age with 56 control eyes referringto the outpatient clinic for near refraction assessment. exclusioncfrieria : previous bulbar surgery or laser , diabetes, historyof keratitis, chronic artificial tears, bulbar trauma, uveitis,narrow angle , PEX Endothelial cell count was performed witha non-contact Topcon SP2000 P endotthelial specular microscope.Eyes were divided into the following categories: (a) < 1000cells, (b) 1000-1500, (c) 1500-2000, (d) 2000-2500, (e) >2500 cells.
Results:
The data from the treated patients are summarized in the followingtable (chi square = 113,p < 0.00001). The cell density was inversely related to theduration of treatment (Spearman rank regression analysis, p< 0.001). No correlation was detected betwwen cell densityand (a) number of scheduled eyedrops / day (Spearman rank regressionanalysis, p = 0.345) and (b) mean IOP of the daily phasing duringtreatment (Spearman rank regression analysis, p = 0.127) Thedata from the untreated patients are as follows: (chi square test, p = 0.179) The cell densitymoderately correlated with the mean IOP of the daily phasing(Spearman rank regression analysis, p = 0.045).
Conclusions:
Corneal endothelial cell density is lower in open angle glaucomatouseyes undergoing longterm multidose medical treatment
Keywords: cornea: endothelium • intraocular pressure • drug toxicity/drug effects