The effect of sodium hyaluronate on the corneal epithelium. An ultrastructural study.

The effect of sodium hyaluronate (NaHa) 1% and 0.1% was studied on 14-day chick embryo corneal epithelium by scanning electron microscopy. It was found that NaHa 1% or 0.1% had no toxic effects on the chick corneal epithelium and the normal architecture of the cells and the morphology of the microvilli was well preserved. A combination of NaHa 0.1% and benzalkonium chloride (BAK) 0.01% reduced the toxic effect of BAK on the surface corneal epithelium. NaHa 0.1% provided a better protection of the corneal epithelium against dryness than hydroxyethylcellulose (HEC) 0.1% or phosphate buffer saline (PBS).