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The Corneal Micropocket Assay: A Model of Angiogenesis in the Mouse Eye
Published on: August 16, 2014
Corneal endothelial abnormalities associated with thalidomide toxicity
Sathish Srinivasan1, Inma Perez-Gomez, Clare O'Donnell
1St. Paul's Eye Unit, Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals, NHS Trust, Liverpool L7 8XP, UK. sathish@tiscali.co.uk
Purpose:
To describe bilateral corneal endothelial abnormalities associated with thalidomide toxicity.
Methods:
Observational case report.
Results:
A 30-year-old man, born with bilateral hypoplastic upper limb defects (phocomelia) caused by thalidomide toxicity, presented with bilateral symmetrical corneal endothelial changes resembling guttata without corneal edema. Pachymetry, specular microscopy, and confocal microscopy were performed. Biomicroscopy findings over a 10-year follow-up showed no changes.
Conclusions:
Nonprogressive bilateral corneal endothelial changes resembling cornea guttata should possibly be included in the ocular manifestations of thalidomide toxicity. We postulate that thalidomide may have affected the migration and development of the mesenchymal neural crest cells, which are the developmental precursors of the corneal endothelium and stroma.
