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Corneal damage following intracorneal injection of N-acetyl-L-cysteine

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Summary

Rabbits were treated with acetylcysteine in four different ways: 1. Intralamellar injection. 2. Wetting of the anterior surface of the cornea after epithelial abrasion. 3. Subconjunctival injection. 4. Intracameral injection. Most striking changes were observed following intracorneal injection where within a few minutes an ectatic prominence was formed. Some edema of the superficial corneal layers was observed also after application of acetylcysteine to the bare stroma. Subconjunctival as well as intracameral injections were tolerated.

From these experiments a conclusion may be drawn that acetylcysteine was able to desintegrate very rapidly the corneal stroma in vivo. Its lytic action might be kept in mind with respect to its intended use in prolonged treatment of corneal ulcers.

Zusammenfassung

Verff. haben den Einfluß einer Acetylcysteinlösung auf das Kaninchenauge auf vier verschiedene Arten untersucht: 1. Intralamelläre Injektion. 2. Direkter Kontakt mit der oberflächlichsten Stromaschicht nach dem Abkratzen des Epithels. 3. Subconjunctivale Injektion. 4. Injektion in die Vorderkammer. Die intralamelläre Injektion hat die deutlichsten Veränderungen ausgelöst, indem binnen einigen Minuten eine hydropische Wölbung der Hornhaut entstand. Ebenso kam eine vermehrte Durchdringung der Cornea mit Flüssigkeit in den oberflächlichsten Schichten des bloßgelegten Stromas nach dem Kontakt mit der Lösung zustande. Nach den Erfahrungen der Verff. kann Acetylcystein eine schnelle Zerstörung des Hornhautstromas in vivo hervorrufen. Diese lytische Wirkung bedeutet eine potentielle Gefahr, falls Acetylcystein für eine langfristige Therapie von Hornhautulcerationen benützt werden sollte.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Eye Research Laboratory, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Prague 2, Czechoslovakia

    J. Obenberger & J. Čejková

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  1. J. Obenberger
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  2. J. Čejková
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Obenberger, J., Čejková, J. Corneal damage following intracorneal injection of N-acetyl-L-cysteine. Albrecht von Graefes Arch. Klin. Ophthalmol. 185, 171–176 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410060

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410060

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