A cytologic aid to diagnosing congenital glaucoma

Using the Giemsa and Papanicolaou staining methods, the authors studied the superficial corneal epithelium of 17 glaucoma patients and 25 normal patients. Smears of the normal patients exhibited a high frequency of precornified cells and a paucity of cornified cells with pyknotic nuclei. Smears of the glaucomatous patients illustrated striking tinctorial changes; these changes were so pronounced that examination of a single section strongly suggested a diagnosis of glaucoma. A case report is presented in which a preliminary diagnosis of congenital glaucoma was disproved by these staining techniques.