AGE-RELATED-CHANGES IN TRABECULAR MESHWORK CELLULARITY

Google Scholar
  • 1 January 1981
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 21  (5) , 714-727
Abstract
To investigate whether alterations in the cellular component of the trabecular meshwork occur with age, trabecular meshwork cellularity and absolute cell number were evaluated, using specimens obtained from patients ranging in age from newborn to 81 yr. Reproducible, quantitative measurements of these parameters were obtained, using montages of 1 .mu.m meridional sections. A progressive decrease in cellularity (58%) and absolute cell number (47%) in the trabecular meshwork occurred over the 81 yr period studied. Regression analysis suggested that the decrease in cellularity and cell number is a linear function of age, resulting from a loss of .apprx. 0.58% of the cells/yr. This change in cellularity parallels seen in the corneal endothelium, implying that trabecular cells, like corneal endothelial cells, may have a limited reparative capacity.