Cells Collected from the Corneal Surface in Sjögren’s Syndrome, Dry Eye, and Normals

Abstract

Cells collected by contact lens cytology (CLC) have been described as nucleated or ghost, based on the presence of a nucleus in fluorescence microscopy. Cell ghosts resemble cells in the appearance of their cytoplasm, but are without nuclei. It is hypothesized that the instability of the tear film in the dry eye states increases the accumulation of both categories of cells on the corneal surface. Hence, more cells will be collected from the dry eye than from the normal eye. The purpose of this study was to determine if cells on the corneal epithelial surface are harvested more easily in the dry eye states.