Stromal damage in rabbit corneas exposed to CO₂ laser radiation

Threshold damage to the cornea from CO₂ lasers is confined to the epithelium. Exposures well above the threshold for epithelial damage produce bowl-shaped stromal wounds. Light and electron microscopy and slit-lamp photographs all show a sharp demarcation between the damaged and undamaged regions 48 hr after exposure. The micrographs also show that the damaged region is accellular. Calculations of the expected temperature increases combined with analyses of slit lamp photographs show that the wound boundary corresponds to a surface of equal peak temperature increase. Comparisons with epithelial and endothelial damage conditions suggest that stromal, endothelial and epithelial cells have essentially the same thermal damage mechanism.