Ozlem Dikmetas1, Orhan Aygün2, Ertugrul Çagri Bolek3, Sibel Kocabeyoglu2, Omer Karadag3, Jale Karakaya4, Sibel Kadayıfçılar2, Murat Irkec2. 1. Department of Ophthalmology, Hacettepe University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey. ozlemdikmetas@gmail.com. 2. Department of Ophthalmology, Hacettepe University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey. 3. Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University Vasculitis Centre (HUVAC), Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey. 4. Department of Biostatistics, Hacettepe University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey.
Abstract
PURPOSE: We sought to investigate alterations in the corneal subbasal nerve plexus and endothelium in patients with Behçet's disease (BD). METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 64 patients with BD and 30 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects. Those with BD were classified as having ocular or non-ocular disease. All subjects underwent a corneal endothelial and subbasal nerve density evaluation using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM). The differences among groups were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's multiple comparison procedure. RESULTS: The mean age of study participants was 35.7 ± 10.2 years (16-58) in the ocular BD group, 39.6 ± 14.9 years (11-66) in the non-ocular BD group, and 34.1 ± 11.2 years (21-55) in the control group. No statistical significance was found in terms of age (p = 0.259) or sex (p = 0.560) between groups. The mean endothelial cell density determined with IVCM was 2124.9 [Formula: see text] 417.4 cells/mm2 (1811-3275) in the ocular group and 2546 [Formula: see text] 335 cells/mm2 (1798-3280) in the control group (p = 0.000). In the ocular group, the mean density of the subbasal nerve plexus was significantly lower (p = 0.004), and nerve tortuosity was significantly higher (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Ocular BD could be responsible for changes in the corneal layers, especially endothelial and corneal nerve structures. Nerve density and tortuosity differences could be inflammatory indicators for BD.
PURPOSE: We sought to investigate alterations in the corneal subbasal nerve plexus and endothelium in patients with Behçet's disease (BD). METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 64 patients with BD and 30 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects. Those with BD were classified as having ocular or non-ocular disease. All subjects underwent a corneal endothelial and subbasal nerve density evaluation using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM). The differences among groups were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's multiple comparison procedure. RESULTS: The mean age of study participants was 35.7 ± 10.2 years (16-58) in the ocular BD group, 39.6 ± 14.9 years (11-66) in the non-ocular BD group, and 34.1 ± 11.2 years (21-55) in the control group. No statistical significance was found in terms of age (p = 0.259) or sex (p = 0.560) between groups. The mean endothelial cell density determined with IVCM was 2124.9 [Formula: see text] 417.4 cells/mm2 (1811-3275) in the ocular group and 2546 [Formula: see text] 335 cells/mm2 (1798-3280) in the control group (p = 0.000). In the ocular group, the mean density of the subbasal nerve plexus was significantly lower (p = 0.004), and nerve tortuosity was significantly higher (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Ocular BD could be responsible for changes in the corneal layers, especially endothelial and corneal nerve structures. Nerve density and tortuosity differences could be inflammatory indicators for BD.
Authors: Michael S Wertheim; William D Mathers; Stephen J Planck; Tammy M Martin; Eric B Suhler; Justine R Smith; James T Rosenbaum Journal: Arch Ophthalmol Date: 2004-12
Authors: Marina Mesquida; Blanca Molins; Victor Llorenç; María Victoria Hernández; Gerard Espinosa; Andrew D Dick; Alfredo Adán Journal: Int Ophthalmol Date: 2013-06-01 Impact factor: 2.031