Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39003429›Full record

ArticleEye (London, England)2024

Inter-zonal epithelial thickness differences for early keratoconus detection using optical coherence tomography.

Tadas Naujokaitis, Ramin Khoramnia, Maximilian Friedrich, Hyeck-Soo Son, Gerd U Auffarth, Victor A Augustin

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Eye (London, England), 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Evaluation of indices for the assessment and classification of keratoconus based on optical coherence tomography and Scheimpflug technology.Ophthalmic & physiological optics : the journal of the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians (Optometrists) · 2025
    Article
  8. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Tadas NaujokaitisInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Ramin KhoramniaInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6237-7773
Maximilian FriedrichInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Hyeck-Soo SonInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Gerd U AuffarthInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Victor A AugustinInternational Vision Correction Research Centre (IVCRC), Department of Ophthalmology, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany. Victor.Augustin@med.uni-heidelberg.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6315-8484

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo develop and test a parameter for early keratoconus screening by quantifying the localized epithelial thickness differences in keratoconic eyes.

methodsThe cross-sectional study included 189 eyes of 116 subjects in total: 86 eyes of 54 keratoconus patients with bilateral ectasia and 40 eyes of 20 healthy subjects in the parameter-development dataset and 42 eyes of 21 keratoconus patients with asymmetric ectasia and 21 eyes of 21 healthy subjects in the parameter-validation dataset. Epithelial thickness maps were obtained using anterior segment optical coherence tomography and the inter-zonal epithelial thickness differences were calculated. The developed parameter was tested in keratoconus patients with asymmetric ectasia.

resultsCompared to healthy controls, the inferior-temporal and global inter-zonal epithelial thickness differences were higher not only in eyes with tomographically significant keratoconus (median [interquartile range] of 4.42 [3.13] µm vs. 0.78 [0.42] µm, p < 0.001, and 3.05 [1.51] µm vs. 1.07 [0.26] µm, p < 0.001, respectively), but also in tomographically normal keratoconus fellow eyes (1.36 [0.85] µm vs. 0.78 [0.42] µm, p = 0.005, and 1.31 [0.32] µm vs. 1.07 [0.26] µm, p = 0.01, respectively). The inferior-temporal inter-zonal epithelial thickness differences had an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (95% confidence interval) of 0.991 (0.972-1) for detecting tomographically significant keratoconus and 0.749 (0.598-0.901) for differentiating between tomographically normal keratoconus fellow eyes and healthy controls.

conclusionsThe inter-zonal epithelial thickness differences are increased in keratoconus fellow eyes which still have a normal Scheimpflug corneal tomography, and therefore may serve as a useful parameter to detect early ectatic changes.

Indexed as

Epithelium, CornealKeratoconusROC CurveTomography, Optical CoherenceAdultCorneal TopographyCross-Sectional StudiesEarly DiagnosisFemaleHumansMaleYoung Adult

Identifiers

PMID39003429
PMCPMC11461491

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.