A Pilot Research Of Confocal Microscopy To Observe The Morpholog Ical Changes Of Cornea In Patients With Dry Eye

Objective To observe the change of corneal morphology in patients with dry eye by confocal microscopy.Methods 100 eyes of 50 patients with dry eye and 100 eyes of 50 normal people were examined by confocal microscopy of Japan Nidek company.The density and atypia of central corneal epithelial cells、the form of subepithelial nerve fibers、the infiltration of Langerhans cells and the density of endothelial cells were observed.Results Confocal microscopy showed that there were significant differences in the cell density of squamous epithelium,pterygoid epithelium and epithelial basal cells in the central corneal area of the patients with and without dry eye(P<0.05),the central cornea surface squamous cell density of the dry eye patients was(986±282)/ mm2 、pterygoid epithelial cells(4820 ± 420)/ mm2、epithelial basal cells(5890 ± 821)/ mm2,the central cornea surface squamous cell density of normal human was(1327±302)/mm2 、 wing epithelial cells(5018±281)/ mm2、epithelial basal cells(6211±1102)/mm2,the atypia of central corneal epithelial cells of the patients with dry eye increased(t=14.3,P<0.01),a small number of cells were activated,subepithelial nerve fibers became thicker and disordered,with Langerhans cells infiltrated,endothelial cell count and morphological difference were not statistically significant.Conclusion Compared with the normal group,the corneal epithelial cell density decreased in patients with dry eye,atypia increased,a few cells were activated,subepithelial nerve fibers became thicker and disordered,with Langerhans cells infiltrated.Confocal microscopy can be real-time,non-invasive observation of the corneal morphological changes in patients with dry eye.