Abstract
PurposeBoston Terriers (BTs) have a greater prevalence of corneal endothelial dystrophy (CED), in comparison to other canine breeds. Similar to Fuchs' endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD), this condition is characterized by endothelial cell degeneration with secondary corneal edema. This study assessed corneal morphology using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) and Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) in BTs with and without CED.MethodsThe corneas of 16 BTs with CED and 15 unaffected, age-matched BTs underwent clinical evaluation and were imaged using IVCM and FD-OCT. A two-sample t-test or Mann-Whitney rank sum test were used to statistically compare parameters between groups. Data are presented as mean ± SD or median (range).ResultsMean age did not significantly differ between affected and unaffected dogs at 10.0 ± 2.0 and 10.6 ± 2.4 years, respectively (P = 0.437). Females (69%) were overrepresented among the CED-affected dogs. In CED patients, IVCM demonstrated endothelial polymegathism and pleomorphism. Corneal endothelial density was significantly less (P < 0.001) in dogs with CED (1026 ± 260 cells/mm2) versus age-matched controls (2297 ± 372 cells/mm2). Fourier-domain OCT demonstrated a significant increase (P < 0.01) in central corneal and endothelium-Descemet's complex thickness in dogs with CED versus age-matched controls at 1019 (485–1550) or 536 (464–650) μm and 32 (22–56) or 25 (15–34) μm, respectively.ConclusionsCorneal endothelial dystrophy in BTs is a bilateral, adult-onset condition that shares many similarities with FECD. Thus, CED could serve as a spontaneous disease model to study the pathogenesis of and develop novel treatments for FECD.
Highlights
Boston Terriers (BTs) have a greater prevalence of corneal endothelial dystrophy (CED), in comparison to other canine breeds
Similar to Fuchs’ endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD), this condition is characterized by endothelial cell degeneration with secondary corneal edema
This study assessed corneal morphology using in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) and Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-Optical coherence tomography (OCT)) in BTs with and without CED
Summary
The corneas of 16 BTs with CED and 15 unaffected, age-matched BTs underwent clinical evaluation and were imaged using IVCM and FD-OCT. All dogs were BTs. Prior to study entry, all dogs underwent a complete physical examination; dogs that were systemically well enough to receive sedation were included. All dogs received a detailed ophthalmic examination, including digital slit-lamp biomicroscopy (Imaging Module IM 900; Haag Streit, Koeniz, Switzerland), handheld slit-lamp biomicroscopy (SL-15; Kowa American Corporation, Torrance, CA, USA), binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy (Keeler Instruments Inc., Broomall, PA, USA) using a 28 diopter (D) indirect lens (Volk Optical, Inc., Mentor, OH, USA), and Schirmer tear-test 1 (STT1; Intervet, Inc., Summit, NJ, USA). None of the dogs received topical eye medications for at least 24 hours prior to entry into the study. Dogs were sedated with acepromazine (0.01 mg/kg) and buprenorphine (0.01 mg/kg) intravenously placed in sternal recumbency for imaging; OcuSOFT Eyewash (Altaire Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Aquebogue, NY, USA) was applied as necessary to prevent corneal desiccation
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