[Hyphema, a risk factor in the glaucomatous eye]

A hemorrhage in the anterior chamber is a frequent phenomenon, very often treated too easily. Our investigation followed for 3 years (1985-1987) the way in which hyphema were resorbed after the eye contusions in the patients operated by cataract or glaucoma. The causes of hyphemas, their onset, the aspect of the blood and the resorption period are analyzed. The majority of hyphemas were resorbed in the first 7 days (in the case of contusions 87%, after operation of cataract 84%) but in the glaucomatous patients the resorption in the first 7 days appeared only in 50% of the cases; the blood remained in the anterior chamber in 12.5% of cases even after 21 days. The blood in the anterior chamber is resorbed by the excretory ducts, mainly as intact erythrocytes; in the glaucomatous patients the ducts are altered and the erythrocytes are more difficulty eliminated. The liquid in the anterior chamber is eliminated by the fistulization opening, but the erythrocytes do not pass as they cannot be resorbed in the subconjunctival space. The blood in the anterior chamber of an eye with ocular hypertension (decompensated glaucoma or contusions with hypertension) favours the hematic impregnation of the cornea, and the macrophages loaded with hemosiderin are deposited at the level of the excretory ducts, thus increasing the danger of hemolytic secondary glaucoma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)