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Updated: Sep 12, 2025
Corneal Confocal Microscopy: A Novel Non-invasive Technique to Quantify Small Fibre Pathology in Peripheral Neuropathies
Published on: January 3, 2011
In Vivo Confocal Microscopy of Corneal Subbasal Nerve Plexus Detects Early Chemotherapy-Induced Polyneuropathy
Nazik Baghdasaryan1, Hans-Joachim Hettlich1, Maria Katz2
1Clinic for Ophthalmology, Johannes Wesling Klinikum Minden, Ruhr-University Bochum, Minden, Germany.
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic utility of corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) for the early detection of chemotherapy-induced polyneuropathy compared with clinical assessment in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy.
Methods:
This prospective longitudinal controlled observational single-center study included 30 patients with cancer receiving paclitaxel and vincristine and 20 healthy controls. Patients were evaluated before and at 3, 8, and 24 weeks after starting chemotherapy. Clinical assessments included the Total Neuropathy Score (TNS), and CCM was used to evaluate the corneal subbasal nerve plexus, focusing on three critical parameters: corneal nerve fiber length, corneal nerve fiber density, and corneal nerve branching density. CCM and TNS were compared over time and against the healthy controls.
Results:
TNS exhibited a significant increase at week 8 compared with baseline (6.30 ± 3.91 vs. 3.67 ± 2.67 points, P < 0.01). By contrast, CCM demonstrated a significant reduction in all 3 parameters 5 weeks earlier at week 3 (corneal nerve fiber length: 23.60 ± 6.14 vs. 31.14 ± 8.38 mm/mm 2 , P < 0.01; corneal nerve fiber density: 27.70 ± 7.69 vs. 34.27 ± 7.87 n/mm 2 , P < 0.01, corneal nerve branching density: 32.17 ± 11.00 vs. 49.12 ± 17.21 n/mm 2 , P < 0.001). The most significant changes in CCM occurred at week 8 after chemotherapy, showing 86% sensitivity and 100% specificity in detecting neuropathy. No significant correlation was observed between CCM and TNS.
Conclusions:
CCM demonstrates high sensitivity, specificity, and utility as an early diagnostic tool for chemotherapy-induced polyneuropathy in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, suggesting its use as a complementary method in clinical practice.
