title: Lamina cribrosa and peripapillary sclera histomorphometry in normal and advanced glaucomatous Chinese eyes with various axial length.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To measure laminar and peripapillary scleral architecture in normal and glaucomatous Chinese eyes with normal and those with elongated axial length.
  
  
  METHODS
  The histomorphometric investigation included a normal group (nonaxially elongated eyes) of 40 human globes (40 patients; mean age, 41.3 +/- 13.4 years; range,15-68) enucleated because of malignant choroidal melanoma, a glaucomatous group (non-axially elongated eyes) of 55 eyes (55 patients; age, 43.3 +/- 20.3 years; range, 12-88) enucleated because of painful secondary angle-closure glaucoma, and a group of 26 glaucomatous globes (glaucomatous elongated axial length group; 26 patients; age, 29.0 +/- 14.4 years; range, 12-60) with an axial length > 27.5 mm. Anterior-posterior histologic sections were morphometrically evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The lamina cribrosa was significantly (P < 0.001) thicker in the normal group than in the glaucomatous group, in which it was significantly (P < 0.001) thicker than in the glaucomatous elongated-length group. Lamina cribrosa thickness decreased significantly with increasing axial length (P < 0.001) and presence of glaucoma (P < 0.001). Peripapillary scleral thickness close to the optic nerve scleral canal and just outside of the optic nerve meninges decreased significantly with increasing axial length (P = 0.04 and P = 0.02, respectively). Peripapillary scleral thickness did not vary significantly between the glaucomatous group and the normal group. The distance between the intraocular space and cerebrospinal fluid space was (P < 0.001) shorter in the two glaucomatous groups than in the normal group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lamina cribrosa thickness and peripapillary sclera thickness decreased significantly with axial length, in addition to a glaucoma-related thinning of the lamina cribrosa. In non-axially elongated eyes, the peripapillary sclera thickness did not vary significantly between glaucomatous eyes and normal eyes.
authors.affiliation: Beijing Institute of Ophthalmology, Beijing TongRen Hospital Eye Center, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Ruojin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.forename: Ningli
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Liaoqing
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Xiaolin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Jost B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Jonas
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D044466:Asian People; D002648:Child; D002681:China; D005123:Eye / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D015812:Glaucoma, Angle-Closure / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure; D008875:Middle Aged; D009898:Optic Disk / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000473:pathology*; D012590:Sclera / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000473:pathology*