Background: To examine a potential correlation between a thin cornea, a thin lamina cribrosa and a thin peripapillary sclera in normal eyes of Chinese, as surrogate for a presumed association between a thin cornea and an increased glaucoma susceptibility.
Methods: The histomorphometric study included 55 non-glaucomatous globes (55 patients; mean age: 41.6 ± 13.6 years) enucleated due to a malignant choroidal melanoma without involvement of the optic nerve or trabecular meshwork. The axial length ranged between 21 and 27 mm. Histological sections through the pupil and the optic disc were morphometrically evaluated. We measured the thickness of the central cornea, central and peripheral lamina cribrosa, and peripapillary sclera.
Results: The mean central corneal thickness (500 ± 68 μm) was statistically not significantly associated with the thickness of the central lamina cribrosa (207 ± 60 μm) (P = 0.62), peripheral lamina cribrosa (P = 0.61), peripapillary sclera close to the optic nerve canal (P = 0.18), peripapillary sclera just outside of the optic nerve meninges (P = 0.11), nor with the shortest distance between the prelaminar space and cerebrospinal fluid space (P = 0.09).
Conclusions: In Chinese, central corneal thickness is not significantly correlated with the thickness of the central and peripheral lamina cribrosa and the thickness of the peripapillary sclera nor with the shortest distance between the intraocular space and the cerebrospinal fluid space. These histomorphometric data do not support a relationship between central corneal thickness and thickness of structures of the optic nerve head, and thus do not support an association between a thin cornea and increased structural glaucoma susceptibility.