Lens thickness in atopic cataract: case-control study.

PURPOSE:To examine whether atopic cataracts are associated with thinner lenses. SETTING:Department of Ophthalmology, Jikei University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. DESIGN:Retrospective matched case-control study. METHODS:31 eyes with atopic cataracts, 62 with nonatopic cataracts, and 31 without cataracts were analyzed. Each group was matched for age (±4 years) and sex. RESULTS:The mean lens thickness (LT) was 3.76 ± 0.40 mm, 3.94 ± 0.49 mm, and 4.11 ± 0.40 mm in eyes with atopic cataracts, nonatopic cataracts, and normal lenses, respectively. Repeated-measures analysis of variance showed that the LT in the atopic cataract group was significantly thinner than that in the nonatopic cataract ( P = .036) and normal lens ( P < .001) groups. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, a thinner LT was negatively correlated with age (odds ratio [OR], 0.91; 95% CI, 0.86-0.96) and positively correlated with anterior subcapsular cataract (ASC) (OR, 5.61; 95% CI, 1.97-15.99). Atopy was not a significant factor. 24 (38.7%) of the 62 eyes with nonatopic cataracts and 24 (77.4%) of the 31 eyes with atopic cataracts had ASC. CONCLUSIONS:The lenses of eyes with atopic cataracts were thinner than those of controls. Atopic cataracts frequently present with anterior subcapsular opacity, which is associated with lens thinning.