An aging population brings with it a dynamic set of clinical challenges; new conditions arise as our patients transition from babies to boomers to card-carrying members of AARP. With advancing age come increases in the incidence of chronic disease, so we see more conditions such as the retinopathy and keratopathy resulting from diabetes,
For those of us focused on the anterior segment, we recognize that chronic keratitis comes in many forms, and these present significant therapeutic challenges. From the filamentary keratitis of dry eye and the interstitial keratitis seen in autoimmune diseases to the persistent corneal defects associated with neurotrophic keratitis, there are treatments to alleviate pain and treatments that reduce the risk of disease progression, but there is still much room for improvement in our therapeutic choices.
This month, we'll briefly consider the healthy cornea, discuss some of the worst-case scenarios for keratitis, and describe how these concepts are driving some of the newest ideas in therapies designed to heal the damaged ocular surface.
The healthy cornea is a unique tissue designed and maintained to transmit and refract light to the lens and the retina. The layered structure of epithelium, stroma and endothelium, along with intervening Bowman's and Descemet's membranes, is key to this function. In addition, there are centripetal aspects to corneal homeostasis. The peripheral cornea interacts with adjacent limbal cells, receives input from surrounding vasculature and is the site of epithelial progenitor cells. The central cornea is an avascular structure with a fully differentiated epithelial layer. Corneal health depends upon the tear film and the aqueous humor for nutritional support and, under normal conditions, exhibits a robust, rapid response to minor surface abrasions and other incidental traumatic stimuli.
While we spend much of our time defining the cause-and-effect relationships underlying corneal pathologies, once in a while it's a useful exercise to consider all the barriers and redundancies built into the cornea and ask what mechanisms and systems are in place to keep the cornea healthy and functional.
Recurrent herpetic disease can result in a poorly healing, trophic corneal ulcer. Response to acute trauma on the corneal surface is similar to that seen in any epithelial tissue. The key difference is that as an avascular tissue the response is mediated primarily by tear flow rather than blood flow. The epithelial layer is densely populated with sensory nerve endings (see December 2013's Therapeutic Topics for details) that regulate lacrimation; this normal feedback loop is further stimulated by any physical or chemical insult.
In cases where tissue damage does not penetrate the epithelial layer (about 60 to 70 µm thick) this process can be completed in as little as 24 hours. More severe traumatic events require epithelial proliferation, migration and reformation of epithelial tight junctions at the basement membrane. With this in mind it's easy to imagine how modest trauma to the corneal surface, such as that which occurs with chronic allergy or dry eye, can have additive effects that challenge the normal repair mechanisms. And when these pathways are further disrupted by defects in tear formation or sensory nerve function, the cornea's ability to respond to any traumatic insult can be significantly impaired.
Neurotrophic keratitis is a rare, degenerative corneal disease that exemplifies the potential for ocular damage when neural feedback loops are lost or impaired.
For ordinary subjects, the cornea is constantly responding to environmental insults, but patients with NK are ill-equipped to mount a healthy response to these events. They develop poorly healing, recurrent corneal abrasions or defects that are slow to respond to existing treatments. Most of the current treatments for keratitis simply augment the natural process of corneal remodeling; when this process is compromised, the effectiveness of treatments such as artificial tears, steroids or non-steroidal anti-inflammatories is also compromised.
Recurrent herpetic disease can result in a poorly healing, trophic corneal ulcer.
An important question that remains unanswered is the extent to which neurotrophic action is mediated directly by neural inputs—peptides and other signaling molecules released by epithelial nerve endings—or by their ability to direct the volume of output and constituents of the lacrimal apparatus. Studies dating back a decade or more have suggested that substance P, a peptide secreted by trigeminal nerves in the cornea, exhibited trophic effects and regulated normal epithelial function.
Staging for conditions such as NK provides a guideline for both progression of the disease and the types of therapeutic approaches in current use.
A hallmark of the corneal surface defects seen in NK is that they are irregular in nature and may include one or more raised edges that can exacerbate tissue damage. When defects have rounded edges, a tarsorrhaphy or a therapeutic contact lens is a common treatment strategy. Stage-2 NK may also involve stromal swelling. This can ultimately lead to stromal melting and corneal perforation.
Traditional treatments for stage-2 or stage-3 NK also include penetrating keratoplasty in combination with tarsorrhaphy or a soft bandage contact lens. Another strategy to prevent the need for corneal transplant is the use of amniotic membranes, a tissue graft that provides both epithelial donor cells and a basement membrane matrix to support corneal re-epithelialization. As with other severe forms of keratitis, responses to these treatments vary from patient to patient.
Various preparations of artificial tears containing autologous serum have been used to treat a number of corneal defects, including dry eye, graft vs. host disease (GVHD) and NK. It's thought that serum can serve to replenish growth factors and other nutrients typically provided by a healthy tear flow. While there is a wealth of literature to support this strategy, most studies are retrospective or single-treatment studies. There are few masked, placebo-controlled trials of serum-supplemented eye drops for any form of keratitis.
A reasonable alternative to serum treatments would be to identify those serum components responsible for their efficacious effect. Two candidates for this approach are nerve growth factor and thymosin β4. Both of these are polypeptide components of normal serum and tear fluids, and both have significant data to support their use in treatment of corneal defects. NGF is a growth factor that is necessary for survival and differentiation of sympathetic and sensory neurons. It also can enhance the function of injured neurons and has additional effects on both neurons and neuronal target tissues.
Like NGF, thymosin β4 is an endogenous constituent of serum, but Tβ4 is normally found in much higher concentrations. Thymosin β4 is a major constituent protein of platelets, macrophages and polymorphonuclear cells where it acts as a G-actin binding molecule and regulator of actin polymerization.
Several studies have established the potential for Tβ4 as a treatment for corneal wounds. It was effective in treatment of corneal defects in patients with GVHD, and was also efficacious in a study of severe dry-eye patients. (Sosne G, IOVS 2013; 54:ARVO E-Abstract 6033) In a 2010 study of patients with stage-2 or -3 NK, Tβ4 treatment resulted in complete healing of persistent corneal defects in six of six patients studied.
Perhaps even farther into ophthalmology's future, we may see stem-cell technologies or other genome-based strategies (such as interfering RNA) applied in treatments for corneal wound healing. 19,20
Dr. Abelson is a clinical professor of ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. McLaughlin is a medical writer at Ora Inc.