Faculty Bibliography

Twenty patients who had iridoplasties performed at the time of penetrating keratoplasty were followed for a minimum of nine months. Although 12 patients had peripheral anterior synechiae (PAS) preoperatively, only four developed progressive PAS and secondary angle closure glaucoma postoperatively. Our experience suggests that iris suturing, by producing a mechanically rigid iris diaphragm, may prevent postoperative anterior synechiae and appositional angle closure

We compared biopsy specimens of human lacrimal gland and conjunctiva preserved by alcohol-acetic acid with the same tissues preserved by freezing to find secretory component. Secretory component was found in lacrimal gland preserved both by alcohol-acetic acid and by freezing. The structure of the tissue was better preserved with the alcohol-acetic acid fixation. Three of eight conjunctival specimens preserved by alcohol-acetic acid showed weak staining for secretory component in a few superficial epithelial cells. We found nonspecific staining of the conjunctiva with the control antiserum, rhodamine-labeled goat antibovine serum. Two specimens preserved by freezing were unreadable; four of the remaining six stained nonspecifically with the remaining two specimens stained with neither the control nor the experimental antiserum; the second may have had more staining with the experimental antiserum than with the control. We found no evidence for including the conjunctiva in the secretory IgA immune system