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PURPOSE: To study the association between after-cataract and secondary glaucoma after lensectomy and 5-fluorouracil treatment in an experimental infant rabbit model. SETTING: St Erik's Eye Hospital, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden. METHODS: Lensectomy was performed on both eyes of 16 three-week-old rabbits. One randomly selected eye of each rabbit was injected with 2.5 mg of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) at surgery and 5.0 mg the day after surgery in order to reduce the formation of after-cataract. Axial length, corneal thickness, corneal diameter, and intraocular pressure were measured preoperatively and four times during the six months following surgery. Six months after surgery, the wet weight of the after-cataract was determined. RESULTS: In 16 aphakic eyes treated with 5-FU, no or a minimal amount ( < 0.001 g) of after-cataract developed. None of the eyes showed signs of secondary glaucoma. Of 16 aphakic eyes not treated with 5-FU, ten developed considerable amounts of after-cataract (>0.10 g); eight of these developed glaucoma. The other six eyes had no or minimal after-cataract and did not develop secondary glaucoma. The relationship between after-cataract and secondary glaucoma was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: A significant relationship between the amount of after-cataract and the development of secondary glaucoma was found in aphakic infant rabbit eyes.
Dr. U. Kugelberg, St Erik's Eye Hospital, Karolinska Institute, Polhemsgatan 50, S-112 82 Stockholm, Sweden
5 Experimental glaucoma; animal models
9.4.11.2 Glaucomas in aphakia and pseudophakia (Part of: 9 Clinical forms of glaucomas > 9.4 Glaucomas associated with other ocular and systemic disorders > 9.4.11 Glaucomas following intraocular surgery)