Morphologic evaluation of Descemet's membrane and corneal endothelium in diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus is characterized by abnormally thickened basement membranes throughout the body and the eye. In addition, abnormal corneal endothelial cell morphology has been found in eyes of diabetics. The authors examined Descemet's membrane (the basement of the corneal endothelium) and the endothelial cells in 19 diabetic corneas and 19 age-matched nondiabetic normal corneas in a masked fashion by transmission electron microscopy and specular microscopy. No statistically significant quantitative or qualitative differences were found between the two groups.