Effect of age, sex, and refractive errors on central corneal thickness measured by Oculus Pentacam^®

Abstract

BackgroundCentral corneal thickness (CCT) can be used to assess the corneal physiological condition as well as the pathological changes associated with ocular diseases. It has an influence on the measurement of intraocular pressure and is being used as a screening tool for refractive surgery candidates. The aim of this study was to determine the median CCT among normal Pakistani population and to correlate CCT with age, sex, and refractive errors.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective analysis of 5,171 healthy eyes in 2,598 patients who came to Hashmanis Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan. The age of the patients ranged from 6 to 70 years. The refractive error was gauged by an auto-refractometer, and CCT was measured using Oculus Pentacam®.ResultsThe median CCT of our study was 541.0 μm with an interquartile range (IQR) of 44.0 μm. The median age was 26.0 years (IQR: 8.0). Median spherical equivalent (SE) of the patients was −4.3 D (IQR: 3.3) with the median sphere value as −4.0 D (IQR: 3.8). Lastly, the median cylinder was −1.0 D (IQR: 1.3). Age has a weak negative correlation with CCT (r=−0.058) and shows statistical significance (P<0.001). Additionally, males had thinner CCT readings than females (P=0.001). The cylinder values, on the other hand, had a significant (P=0.004) and positive correlation (r=0.154). Three values showed no significant correlation: sphere (P=0.100), SE (P=0.782), and the left or right eye (P=0.151).ConclusionAmong the Pakistani population, CCT was significantly affected by three variables: sex, age, and cylinder. No relationship of CCT was observed with the left or right eye, sphere, and SE.

Determination of Central Corneal Thickness in Patients with Refractive Anomalies and Emmetropy

“…Similarly, according to Gelawet [29], they are in conflict with some earlier findings where the average was higher in males than in females, while according to Hahn, in the oldest CCT the least apparent [26]. According to the study of Hashman N, they showed that males had significantly smaller skin corneas than females [30]. Also CCT did not show any gender difference, according to M. Micheal [20].…”

The Assessment of Age-Related Changes in Anterior Segment Parameters Measured by Dual Scheimpflug Analyzer

“…Hashmani et al found that the astigmatic refractive error affected central corneal thickness. 12 The cylinder values were found to have a positive correlation with CCT, with a r-value of 0.154.…”

“…Sample sizes of subjects in first, sixth and seventh decade were so small and could not be evaluated. 12 On the other hand, Atchison et al found no significant correlation between central corneal thickness and age by using Scheimpflug topography. 13 In these studies, the age ranged between 10, 20 years and 70 years and refractive status was variable.…”

“…11 While, Hashmani et al found decline with age in CCT measured by Scheimpflug Analyzer, Atchinson et al did not find any alteration. 12,13 These studies did not include subjects under the age of 10 and the refractive status was variable.…”

Comparison of central corneal thickness measurements obtained by community optometrists to those obtained in secondary care

“…It is also conceivable that the differences in CCT noted may have been due to genuine changes in CCT rather than measurement error. For example, numerous cross-sectional studies have suggested CCT decreases with age [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] . and changes in corneal hydration might affect measurements.…”