Corneal Stroma Analysis and Related Ocular Manifestations in Recovered COVID-19 Patients.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci
; 65(5): 14, 2024 May 01.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38713483
ABSTRACT
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) on corneal stroma characteristics, ocular manifestations, and post-recovery refractive surgery outcomes after varying recovery durations.Methods:
Fresh corneal lenticules from patients with post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; recovered within 135 days) and healthy controls (HCs) after small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) surgery were obtained for experimental validation of SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility, morphological changes, and immune response of the corneal stroma. Corneal optical density (CD) was measured using the Pentacam HR. Corneal epithelium thickness (ET) and endothelium parameters were evaluated by wide-field optical coherence tomography (OCT) and non-contact specular microscopy (SP-1P), respectively. All the patients were assessed after SMILE surgery until 3 month of follow-up.Results:
The cornea was susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 with the presence of SARS-CoV-2 receptors (CD147 and ACE2) and spike protein remnants (4 out of 58) in post-recovery corneal lenticules. Moreover, SARS-CoV-2 infection triggered immune responses in the corneal stroma, with elevated IL-6 levels observed between 45 and 75 days post-recovery, which were then lower at around day 105. Concurrently, corneal mid-stromal nerve length and branching were initially higher in the 60D to 75D group and returned to control levels by day 135. A similar trend was observed in CD within zones 0 to 2 and 2 to 6 and in the hexagonal cells (HEX) ratio in endothelial cells, whereas ET remained consistent. Notably, these changes did not affect the efficacy, safety, or predictability of post-recovery SMILE surgery.Conclusions:
SARS-CoV-2 induces temporal alterations in corneal stromal morphology and function post-recovery. These findings provided a theoretical basis for corneal health and refractive surgery management in the post-COVID-19 milieu.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Substância Própria
/
Tomografia de Coerência Óptica
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SARS-CoV-2
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COVID-19
Limite:
Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
/
Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci
/
Investig. ophthalmol. vis. sci. (Online)
/
Investigative ophthalmology & visual science (Online)
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
China
País de publicação:
Estados Unidos