Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40404340›Full record

ArticleBMJ open ophthalmology2025

Bowman's layer and corneal thickness in health and disease.

Yaochun Shen, Yalin Zheng, Alfredo Borgia, Matteo Posarelli, Rose Herbert, Tom Sharp, Luca Pagano, Vito Romano, Andrea Madden, Alexander Undan and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open ophthalmology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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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

11 authors.

Yaochun ShenElectrical Engineering and Electronics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-8915-1993
Yalin ZhengDepartment of Eye and Vision Science, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
Alfredo BorgiaCorneal and External Disease, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-3976-242X
Matteo PosarelliRoyal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK.
Rose HerbertDepartment of Eye and Vision Science, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-6728-5125
Tom SharpCornea, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK.
Luca PaganoOphthalmology, Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen Hospitals NHS Trust, Liverpool, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-8534-6817
Vito RomanoDepartment of Eye and Vision Science, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-5148-7643
Andrea MaddenCornea, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK.
Alexander UndanCornea, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK.
Stephen B KayeDepartment of Eye and Vision Science, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK sbkaye@bmj.com.ORCID 0000-0003-0390-0592

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo investigate central Bowman's layer thickness (BT) in relation to central corneal thickness (CCT) and curvature, and epithelial thickness in healthy and disease corneas.

methodsPatients with keratoconus (KC), corneal dystrophies (CD) and healthy controls (HC) were included. Linnik and Mirau versions of an ultra-high axial resolution line field spectral domain optical coherence tomography device were used to image the cornea, in addition to commercially available devices. A supervised automated segmentation process was used to extract the quasi-point thickness of Bowman's layer.

results62 participants: 24 with KC, 20 with CD and 18 HC were included. Mean central BT was 15.41 µm (SD 0.49; min-max: 12.28-19.54) in HC, 14.27 µm (SD:0.43; min-max: 11.22-18.25) in KC and 15.65 µm (SD 0.64; min-max: 12.42-20.06) in CD (mainly Fuchs CD). Patients with KC had thinner central BT than those with CD (p=0.03), but not compared with HC (p=0.13). Central BT was significantly associated with CCT (p<0.01), being on average 3% of CCT. The ratio of BT to CCT was independent of diagnosis (CD 0.028, HC 0.030, KC 0.028, p=0.88), age (p=0.23), sex (p=0.67), Kmax (p=0.77) or epithelial thickness (p=0.72).

conclusionsOver sample populations of healthy, keratoconic and dystrophic corneas, central BT was consistently associated with corneal thickness and was independent of age, sex, Kmax, and epithelial thickness. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN40558.

Indexed as

Bowman MembraneCorneaCorneal Dystrophies, HereditaryKeratoconusAdolescentAdultCorneal PachymetryCorneal TopographyEpithelium, CornealFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedTomography, Optical CoherenceYoung AdultAnatomyCorneaImaging

Identifiers

PMID40404340
PMCPMC12104951

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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.