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Abstract #95331 Published in IGR 22-2
The Force of Lens Growth: A Mechanical Insult to the Choroid
Strenk LM; Guo S; Lu K; Werner L; Strenk SAJournal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery 2022; 48: 342-348
PURPOSE: To calculate the forces applied to uvea and retina as a result of lifelong crystalline lens growth. DESIGN: Retrospective Study. SETTING: MRI Research, Inc., Middleburg Heights, Ohio, USA; Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey; USC Psychology University of Southern California, Los Angeles CA. METHODS: Magnetic resonance images were acquired from 15 phakic/pseudophakic eye pairs in cataract patients (ages 46-83). Choroidal lengths were measured. The forces required to produce differences between phakic/pseudophakic choroidal lengths were calculated. RESULTS: The length of the choroid is greater in the phakic eye compared to the corresponding pseudophakic eye and this difference increases with age (P = 0.00006; power = 0.99). The corresponding choroidal strain also increases with age (P = 0.00003, power = 0.99) as do the forces required to produce such a change in choroidal length (P=0.000008, power = 0.99). CONCLUSIONS: We theorize that lifelong crystalline lens growth applies a chronic, traumatic, mechanical insult to the uvea and retina. This previously unknown, ever-increasing, force appears to stretch the choroidal tissue and may be an intraocular pressure independent modifiable risk factor for retinal disease. Implications exist for understanding the pathophysiology of retinal diseases in the aging eye that are often co-morbid with cataracts, for example, glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.
MRI Research, Inc., Middleburg Heights, OH; Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, New Jersey Medical School-Rutgers University, Newark NJ; Doheny Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA; Ophthalmology, University of Utah/Moran Eye Center, Salt Lake City, UT.
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