Table of Contents
What is punctate epithelial erosion?
Punctate epithelial erosions (PEE) are evidence of ocular surface dryness. They represent areas of epithelial cell loss and therefore stain positively with fluorescein. The distribution of the PEE can provide information regarding the underlying etiology.
What is staining in the eye?
What Is Corneal Staining? Corneal staining isn’t a disease, it’s a sign of abrasions to your cornea, the outer surface tissue of your eyes. Abrasions can have different causes, including wearing contact lenses or if something gets stuck in or scratches your eye.
Can dry eyes cause keratitis?
Keratitis resulting from infections (called infectious keratitis) can be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. Keratitis can also occur a result of other insults to the cornea (called noninfectious keratitis) such as an injury, wearing your contact lenses too long, or very dry eye.
What is corneal blood staining?
Corneal blood staining (CBS) is a complication of hyphema and increased intraocular pressure (IOP). Spontaneous clearing can take up to 3 years, starting at the periphery. 1. Factors that increase the risk of CBS include total hyphema, rebleeding, and endothelial dysfunction.
What causes inferior corneal staining?
Corneal staining has long been thought to be associated with conditions of the ocular surface, such as dry eye disease, in addition to contact lens wear, although it is often observed in otherwise normal individuals as well.
When does corneal blood staining occur?
Corneal blood staining typically occurs after significant and prolonged hyphema, usually the result of ocular trauma, and especially in cases of chronically elevated intraocular pressure. The opacification consists of hemosiderin that has become embedded in the corneal stroma.
Is corneal staining permanent?
Although spontaneous resolution of the staining may occur, many patients end up with permanent corneal opacity and a need for corneal transplantation [1]. As far as we know, no large-scale studies about either spontaneous resolution of corneal staining or nonsurgical treatment options have been reported.
What is punctate epithelial keratitis?
The punctate epithelial keratitis (PEK) is a distinct clinical entity characterized by coarse, raised intraepithelial lesions surrounded by focal inflammatory cells, with punctate staining as well as areas of negative staining on fluorescein. PEK is often a clinical picture common to various cornea pathologies.
What is punctate and diffuse epithelial staining?
Epithelial staining after instillation of fluorescein is observed under cobalt blue light as a bright green fluorescence, which can be described as ‘punctate’ (spot-like), ‘diffuse’ (spots merging together) and ‘coalescent’ (large regions of confluence).
Why do punctate spots appear after staining?
Punctate Staining. Possible explanations include poor adherence to the membrane during the application, dislodgement of cells during membrane fixation and staining, disruption of intact cells, or diffusion of the dye. Alternatively, this minority of fluorescent punctate spots may not originate from cells.
Does superficial punctate staining reflect corneal injury or toxicity?
The literature reflects that superficial punctate corneal staining does not reflect corneal injury or toxicity. More work is required to elucidate the various mechanisms underlying superficial punctate staining, and to provide clinicians with a rational interpretation algorithm for this observation.
What causes fluorescein-associated superficial punctate staining in dry eyes?
The basis of fluorescein-associated superficial punctate staining in dry eyes is controversial. Prior explanations include fluorescein pooling in surface erosive defects, intercellular trapping of fluorescein, and intracellular staining in dead cells.