To assess the differences in corneal optical density (COD) between young patients with dry eye and healthy controls, as well as to evaluate the correlations with tear film parameters.

This cross-sectional study involved 30 patients with dry eye and 60 age-matched controls (aged 18–35y). All participants underwent a thorough ophthalmic evaluation, including visual acuity testing, refraction, the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire, tear break-up time (TBUT), the Schirmer’s test, corneal staining, and Pentacam densitometry.

The groups were matched for age (21.93±2.88y vs 20.80±2.27y) and sex (females: 60.0% vs 63.3%; P>0.05). No statistically significant differences were found in refraction parameters, best-corrected visual acuity, or mean keratometry when comparing the two groups (all P>0.05). Patients with dry eye exhibited significantly poorer tear parameters including OSDI (25.5±10.6 vs 8.3±6.6, P<0.001), TBUT (6.2±2.2s vs 12.9±6.4s, P<0.001), and Schirmer score (20.9±11.2 vs 26.0±11.4 mm, P=0.02). Dry eye patients displayed a significantly higher average COD in the midperipheral zone (6–10 mm) for both the anterior (18.81±2.15 vs 17.25±1.66, P<0.001) and central layers (11.56±1.35 vs 10.78±0.90, P=0.002) compared to the controls. The anterior COD in the 6–10 mm zone (β=0.329, P<0.001) and the middle COD in the 6–10 mm zone (β=0.267, P=0.006) showed a statistically significant direct relationship with OSDI.

Young patients with dry eye exhibit increased COD, especially in the anterior and middle corneal layers, which correlates with symptom severity. These results imply that corneal densitometry could act as an objective measure of dry eye severity, supplementing traditional clinical evaluations.

To identify topographic determinants of the anterior chamber angle (ACA) in patients with keratoconus (KCN).

Four hundred and ten eyes of 294 patients with KCN were recruited for this study. First, complete ocular examinations were performed for all patients, including visual acuity measurement, refraction, and slit-lamp biomicroscopy. Then, all participants underwent corneal imaging by the Oculus Pentacam HR.

The mean age of the participants was 32.40± 8.52y (15-60y) and 69.5% of them were male. The mean ACA was 38.47°±5.75° (range: 14.40° to 56.50°) in the whole sample, 38.24°±6.00° in males, and 38.98°±5.11° in females (P=0.447). The mean ACA was significantly different among different groups of cone morphology, as patients with nipple cones showed the lowest mean ACA. Moreover, there were statistically significant differences in the mean ACA among different groups of cone locations, with patients having central cones exhibiting the lowest mean ACA (P<0.001). Anterior and posterior Q values were significantly, directly correlated with ACA (anterior Q: r=0.122, P=0.014, posterior Q: r=0.192, P<0.001).

This study provides critical insights into the risk factors for ACA narrowing in KCN patients, which is essential for planning intraocular surgeries. Patients with nipple and central cones exhibited the most significant ACA narrowing. Additionally, more negative Q-values are associated with increased ACA narrowing, highlighting the need for targeted diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.