[SPECULAR MICROSCOPY NORMATIVE DATA: DOES PATIENT AGE HAVE AN IMPACT ON CORNEAL ENDOTHELIUM FEATURES IN ELDERLY EYES?].

INTRODUCTION: Corneal endothelium is essential for adequate corneal hydration and transparency. Age and ethnicity- related variability in endothelial properties is known.

OBJECTIVES: To determine specular microscopy trends in the elderly and to provide normative data of endothelial features of the sampled cohort of the Israeli population aged 55-88 years.

METHODS: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study analyzing specular microscopy data of the Israeli population aged 55-88 years and the determination of correlation of age to specular microscopy features. A comparison of endothelial properties was conducted between age-based groups: 55-64 years, 65-74 years, and 75-88 years.

RESULTS: One hundred and eighty eight eyes of 188 patients, mean age 71.05 ± 7.9 years, were included; Mean Cell Density 2549.53 ± 294.71 cells/mm²; Coefficient of variation (CV) 42.12 ± 6.9%; Hexagonality (Hexa) 49.15 ± 6.62%; Central Corneal thickness (CCT) 552 ± 47 µm. A weak correlation was observed between cell density and age [r = -0.169; p = 0.02); CV, Hexa, and CCT did not show any correlation with age. Group analysis did not reveal statistically significant differences between the following age groups: 55-64 years; 65-74 years; 75-88 years

CONCLUSIONS: Normative data of endothelial properties of the sampled cohort of Israeli population aged 55-88 years is provided. Age has a weak correlation with cell density.

DISCUSSION AND SUMMARY: Considering the aging of the population, endothelial properties do not justify the rejection of potential donors based on age alone.