In vivo measurement of shear modulus of the human cornea using optical coherence elastography

Corneal stiffness plays a critical role in shaping the cornea with respect to intraocular pressure and physical interventions. However, it remains difficult to measure the mechanical properties noninvasively. Here, we report the first measurement of shear modulus in human corneas in vivo using optic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports Vol. 10; no. 1; p. 17366
Main Authors: Ramier, Antoine, Eltony, Amira M., Chen, YiTong, Clouser, Fatima, Birkenfeld, Judith S., Watts, Amy, Yun, Seok-Hyun
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 15.10.2020
Subjects:
631/1647/245/2226
639/301/923/1029
639/624/1111/55
Adult
Aged
Cornea - diagnostic imaging
Elasticity Imaging Techniques - methods
Humanities and Social Sciences
Humans
Middle Aged
multidisciplinary
Pilot Projects
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Stress, Mechanical
Tomography, Optical Coherence - methods
ISSN:2045-2322, 2045-2322
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Corneal stiffness plays a critical role in shaping the cornea with respect to intraocular pressure and physical interventions. However, it remains difficult to measure the mechanical properties noninvasively. Here, we report the first measurement of shear modulus in human corneas in vivo using optical coherence elastography (OCE) based on surface elastic waves. In a pilot study of 12 healthy subjects aged between 25 and 67, the Rayleigh-wave speed was 7.86 ± 0.75 m/s, corresponding to a shear modulus of 72 ± 14 kPa. Our data reveal two unexpected trends: no correlation was found between the wave speed and IOP between 13–18 mmHg, and shear modulus decreases with age (− 0.32 ± 0.17 m/s per decade). We propose that shear stiffness is governed by the interfibrillar matrix, whereas tensile strength is dominated by collagen fibrils. Rayleigh-wave OCE may prove useful for clinical diagnosis, refractive surgeries, and treatment monitoring.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-020-74383-4