Studies on the change of proteoglycan in the corneal tissue after photorefractive keratectomy in rabbits

Objective: To investive the relationship between the haze formation and the change of proteoglycan in the corneal tissue after photorefractive keratectomy（PRK）.Methods: sixteen adult New Zealand White rabbits（thirty-two eyes） received PRK for –9.00D ablation. According to the time of rabbits sacrifice, they were divided into four groups, and eight eyes were in each group. They were 1 week, 3 week, 1 month and 3 month groups. After surgery, the corneas were examined periodically by slip-lamp microscopy for haze formation.the eyes were enucleated, and the corneas were studied with observation of ultrastructure histochemitry for proteoglycans. Results: The formation of haze had a tendency from mild to severe, and along with the time prolongation, it gradually decreased and disappeared. The newly synthesized abnormal proteoglycans were deposited in the anterior corneal stroma. Conclusion: The formation of haze is closely related to the deposition of proteoglycans in the anterior corneal stroma in the surgical area.