[Effect of diabetes mellitus on anterior central lens epithelium in cataract patients].
The relationship between diabetic metabolic disorder and the impairment of lens epithelium in the development of age-related cataract cannot be completely defined yet. In this prospective study, morphological criteria and the phosphorus content of the anterior central lens epithelium in type-II diabetics and nondiabetics are compared.


METHODS
Fifty-six of the overall 159 patients with age-related cataracts were suffering from type-II diabetes (group I) and 103 are nondiabetics (group II). In each case, a fragment of the anterior central lens epithelium was evaluated morphologically using a scanning electron microscope (S-2400) and examined by EDXA (X-ray spectrometer TN-5500), with regard to phosphorus content. The criteria considered were the degree of damage to the epithelium (score 1-3), the morphologically evaluated cell density and the "peak/background" relationship for phosphorus.


RESULTS
The mean degree of damage to the epithelium was 1.48 +/- 0.53 in the type-II diabetic group (I) and 1.55 +/- 0.65 in the nondiabetic group (II), respectively. The median cell density of type-II diabetics (group I) was 4838 +/- 1033 cells/mm2 compared with 5454 +/- 1368 cells/mm2 of the nondiabetics (group II). The mean "peak/background" relationship for phosphorus was 0.46 +/- 0.20 in group I and 0.51 +/- 0.26 in group II, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
In the younger patients, the significant decrease in cell density and the increased degree of damage to the anterior central lens epithelium in the type-II diabetic group could be attributed to the cataractogenic influence of diabetic metabolic disorder on the lens epithelium. Another possible indication for that was the smaller phosphorus content in this group as evidence of the decrease in the biological activity of the cells (ATP-function). The primary cataractogenic importance of the lens epithelium in type-II diabetics could not be concluded.
Struck
H G
HG
Klinik und Poliklinik für Augenheilkunde, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg.
Hammer
U
U
Seydewitz
V
V
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002386:Cataract / Q000473:pathology*; D002387:Cataract Extraction; D002452:Cell Count; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000473:pathology*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000473:pathology*; D004848:Epithelium / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008875:Middle Aged