[Study of lacrimal fluid trace elements in several eye diseases]

Trace element composition and content were studied by neutron activation method and atomic emission spectral analysis in 200 lacrimal fluid samples from children and adolescents with emmetropia and progressive myopia of 3.5 to 12.0 diopters and in 48 samples from adults with open-angle glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and without ocular diseases (controls). Lacrimal fluid trace element level reflecting their metabolism in the eye was found related to subjects' age and sex and changed in various diseases. Progressive myopia was found associated with reduced cooper content and changed ratio of zinc to iron, this indicating certain metabolic disorders in the connective tissue system, in the scleral membrane first of all, and in the antioxidant defense system. Changed levels of iron, magnesium, and aluminum were detected, and, to a lesser extent, of zinc and copper in patients with diabetic retinopathy, whereas open-angle glaucoma was associated with reduced zinc level and increased iron content.