Effect of blunt trauma on the corneal endothelium

Specular microscopy of central corneal endothelium was performed on 26 patients with a history of blunt uniocular trauma with hyphema. Compared with the uninjured fellow eye, the injured eye had a mean decrease in endothelial cell density (ECD) of 6.4%. In 12 patients with angle recession, the decrease in ECD was 12.2%, compared with 14 patients without angle recession with a decrease in ECD of 1.2%. In five patients with greater than 180 degrees of angle recession, the mean decrease in ECD was 21.2%. No significant decrease in ECD was noted to be associated with size of hyphema, iridodialysis, vitreoretinal abnormalities, or transiently increased intraocular pressure.