Corneal endothelial chnages with rigid contact lens wear

The authors conducted a study of the effects of PMNill contact lens wear on the corneal endothelial mosaic of first-time wearers. A comparison of photographs taken through a slit-lamp at varying magnifications (32X, 50X, and 7OX) during pre-fitting, adaptive and full-time wearing stages was made to evaluate changes in the endothelial mosaic. Qualitative analysis of the mosaic revealed no major changes in cell size, contour, or elevations. However, the clarity of the mosaic was obscured for some subjects due to central corneal clouding. Quantitative analysis showed no statistically significant changes in cell density between the various stages of contact lens wear. It was concluded for this small sample in the time period studied that PMMA lenses fit to Tabb specifications are not associated with any permanent qualitative or quantitative changes in the endothelial mosaic. i