title: A case of bilateral corneal epithelial dysplasia characterized by laser confocal biomicroscopy and cytokeratin immunofluorescence.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe a case of bilateral corneal epithelial dysplasia in which each lesion was characterized by both laser confocal biomicroscopy and cytokeratin immunofluorescence.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 52-year-old Japanese woman with bilateral corneal epithelial dysplasia was treated by corneal epithelial debridement. We observed the affected area with laser confocal biomicroscopy before and after treatment and examined the immunofluorescence of cytokeratins to examine the characteristics of the abnormal epithelial cells.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Laser confocal biomicroscopy revealed the atypical epithelial cells in all layers of the corneal epithelium as well as the reconstituted normal structure of the corneal epithelium after epithelial debridement. Immunofluorescence of cytokeratin 12 (K12) and K4 revealed the presence of four types of cells (those positive for one, both or neither of these cytokeratins) in each lesion.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cells expressing both K12 and K4 probably represented dysplastic cells that had invaded the cornea via the limbus and adopted characteristics of corneal epithelial cells. Cells lacking both K12 and K4 were probably either undifferentiated cells or epithelial cells in which cytokeratin expression had not been initiated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, Yamaguchi, Japan. mwakut@yamaguchi-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Makiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wakuta
authors.forename: Tai-Ichiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chikama
authors.forename: Norihisa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Teruo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nishida
mesh_terms: D003316:Corneal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000601:surgery; D019781:Corneal Topography; D003646:Debridement; D019573:Epithelium, Corneal / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D006801:Humans; D053551:Keratin-12 / Q000378:metabolism; D053527:Keratin-4 / Q000378:metabolism; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D053551:Keratin-12; D053527:Keratin-4