NCT06914817

Brillouin Microscopy Used to Evaluate Corneal Mechanical Properties

Brillouin Microscopy Used to Evaluate Corneal Mechanical Properties in Patients With Corneal Dystrophies and Post-Corneal Surgery: a Pilot Study

• Status: Not Yet Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 100 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Vienna Institute for Research in Ocular Surgery · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This study aims to explore the mechanical properties of the cornea using a non-invasive imaging technique called Brillouin microscopy. This innovative method measures corneal elasticity by detecting small shifts in light frequency, which occur due to interactions with acoustic waves in the tissue. These measurements can provide insights into how corneal stiffness is altered in various eye diseases or after surgery. The study includes 100 participants, divided into different groups: patients with Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy (FED), Map Dot Fingerprint Dystrophy (MDFD), and those who have undergone corneal surgeries such as Penetrating Keratoplasty (PKP), Descemet's Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty (DSAEK), and Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty (DMEK). Healthy individuals will also be studied as a control group. Participants will first receive a standard eye exam, including a slit-lamp examination. Then, Brillouin microscopy will be used to measure the cornea's mechanical stiffness. Additional tests include optical coherence tomography (OCT), corneal topography and tomography, pachymetry (measuring corneal thickness), endothelial cell count, and intraocular pressure (IOP) measurement. The purpose of this study is to better understand how diseases and surgeries affect corneal biomechanics. The researchers will also examine how well the Brillouin measurements match with findings from other clinical imaging tests. The results may help improve diagnosis and treatment options for corneal disorders.

Conditions

• Map Dot Fingerprint Dystrophy
• Post-penetrating Keratoplasty
• Post-Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty
• Healthy Corneas
• Fuchs Endothelial Dystrophy
• Ost-Descemet Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DEVICE	Brillouin optical scanning system (Intelon Optics) (BOSS)	Brillouin microscopy is a non-invasive optical imaging technique that measures the mechanical properties of tissues, such as stiffness and elasticity, by analyzing light scattering caused by natural acoustic waves within the tissue.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-04-01
• Primary completion: 2025-10-01
• Completion: 2025-10-01
• First posted: 2025-04-06
• Last updated: 2025-04-06

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Austria

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated device study