Clinical Characteristics of the Eye with Fuch's Corneal Endothelial Dystrophy after Descemet Stripping Only

Purpose: To report the effect of removal of a central descemet membrane on the endothelial function, morphology, and clinical symptoms of eyes with Fuch's endothelial dystrophy. Methods: From August 2019 to January 2021, patients with Fuch's endothelial dystrophy, i.e., with confluent, central corneal gut tae and cataracts that required surgery, underwent phacoemulsification, intraocular lens implantation, and central descemet membrane stripping. To evaluate the effect of descemet stripping only (DSO), visual acuity and intraocular pressure were measured, and corneal pachymetry, slit-lamp and specular microscopy, and anterior segment optical coherence tomography performed, before surgery and at 1, 7, and 30 days and 3 and 6 months after surgery. Results: Seven patients (10 eyes) were included. Visual acuity improved from 1.01 +/- 0.40 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) preoperatively to 0.33 +/- 0.22 logMAR 6 months after surgery (p = 0.008). The mean central corneal thickness decreased from 578.50 +/- 36.88 mu m preoperatively to 568.50 +/- 48.61 mu m 6 months after surgery; the difference was not significant (p = 0.507). The endothelial cell count increased significantly from 663.80 +/- 356.40/mm(2) preoperatively to 1,082.00 +/- 274.46/mm(2) 6 months after surgery (p = 0.043). Conclusions: DSO can serve as a useful alternative when corneal transplantation is not possible in patients with Fuch's endothelial dystrophy, but treatment efficacy and safety require further evaluation.