Central Corneal Thickness and Corneal Endothelial Cells in Pseudoexfoliation Syndrome

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To evaluate the central corneal thickness (CCT) and corneal endothelial cell density (ENDO) in pseudoexfoliation syndrome. METHODS: Medical records of patients who underwent a preoperative examination for cataract surgery and an examination for glaucoma were retrospectively reviewed. The present study included 44 patients (59 eyes) and age- and sex-matched controls. The total pseudoexfoliation patients divided into 2 groups, such as pseudoexfoliation syndrome (28 eyes) and pseudoexfoliative glaucoma (21 eyes) .The intraocular pressure (IOP), CCT, ENDO, corneal curvature (CC) and axial length (AL) were measured. RESULTS: The total pseudoexfoliation group showed significantly higher IOP (p = 0.001), thinner CCT (p = 0.003) and lower ENDO (p = 0.037). The pseudoexfoliation syndrome group showed significantly thinner CCT (p = 0.010) and lower EDNO (p = 0.041), but no significant difference in IOP (p = 0.941). There was no significant difference in CCT (p = 0.060) and ENDO (p = 0.171) between the pseudoexfoliative glaucoma group and controls, but the pseudoexfolliative glaucoma group showed significantly higher IOP (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The pseudoexfoliation group showed thinner CCT which should be taken into consideration when evaluating IOP with the applanation tonometer and diagnosing glaucoma, especially in pseudoexfoliation syndrome patients.