Effect of Age and Gender on Corneal Epithelial Thickness in Refractive Surgery Candidates.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of age and gender on corneal epithelial thickness in healthy refractive surgery candidates.

Methods: A retrospective, single-centered cross-sectional study in which we used the Anterior Segment (AS-OCT), MS39 -a device well-suited for corneal epithelial assessment, to measure the corneal epithelial thickness (CET) at five anatomical regions: the central zone and four peripheral quadrants (superior, inferior, nasal, and temporal) in consecutive healthy individuals evaluated for refractive surgery evaluation.

Results: A total of 181 right eyes of individuals were divided into two groups based on their gender, and further into their age groups. The CET was significantly thicker in males compared to females in all four quadrants (p<0.005). Age also influenced the epithelial thickness, as with increasing age there was a thicker CET, in the inferior (p<0.05), nasal (p<0.05), temporal (p<0.001) and superior quadrants (p<0.05). No significant correlation was found with the central CET (p=0.06).

Conclusion: Corneal epithelial thickness varies between males and females in all quadrants with males having significantly thicker epithelium. In addition, age is a factor that significantly influences the CET, showing an increase with advancing age. Refractive surgeons should take this into consideration especially when planning transepithelial refractive procedures.