Manifestations of type 2 diabetes in corneal endothelial cell density, corneal thickness and intraocular pressure

We sought to evaluate central corneal thickness (CCT), corneal endothelial cell density (ECD) and intraocular\udpressure (IOP) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and to associate potential differences with diabetes\udduration and treatment modality in a prospective, randomized study. We measured ECD, CCT and IOP of\ud125 patients with type 2 DM (mean age 57.1¡11.5 years) and compared them with 90 age-matched controls.\udMeasured parameters were analyzed for association with diabetes duration and glucose control modalities (insulin\udinjection or oral medication) while controlling for age. In the diabetic group, the mean ECD (2511¡252 cells/mm2),\udmean CCT (539.7¡33.6 mm) and mean IOP (18.3¡2.5 mmHg) varied significantly from those the control group\ud[ECD: 2713¡132 cells/mm2 (P,0.0001), CCT: 525.0¡45.3 mm (P50.003) and IOP: 16.7¡1.8 mmHg\ud(P,0.0001)]. ECD was significantly reduced by about 32 cell/mm2 for diabetics with duration of .10 years when\udcompared with those with duration of ,10 years (P,0.05). CCT was thicker and IOP was higher for diabetics with\udduration of .10 years than those with duration of ,10 years (P.0.05). None of the measured parameters was significantly\udassociated with diabetes duration and treatment modality (P.0.05). In conclusion, subjects with type 2\udDM exhibit significant changes in ECD, IOP and CCT, which, however, are not correlated with disease duration or\udif the patients receive on insulin injection or oral medications