Relationship of age and refraction to central corneal thickness.

PURPOSE To obtain descriptive statistics of central corneal thickness (CCT) in a large population of normal eyes undergoing refractive surgery and study the relationship of 2 variables, age and refraction, with CCT. SETTING Cornea and Laser Eye Institute, Hersh Vision Group, Teaneck, NJ. METHODS The CCT of 5158 patients was measured using an ultrasound pachymeter. Age and preoperative spherical equivalent were recorded for all patients. The entire population and subgroups stratified to age and spherical equivalent were analyzed. RESULTS Mean CCT was 544 μm with an SD of 34 μm and a range of 415-695 μm. CCT did not correlate with either age (r = 0.00645) or refraction (r = 0.00072). CONCLUSIONS This study defines the CCT in a large population of patients undergoing refractive surgery. In this population, age and refraction did not affect CCT.