EXFOLIATION OF THE LENS CAPSULE (GLAUCOMA CAPSULARE): REPORT OF TWO CASES BEARING ON THE ETIOLOGY, NATURE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CONDITION

In a previous paper 1 I suggested that study of exfoliation of the lens capsule would lead to a better understanding of the embryology and anatomy of the zonular fibers and their attachment to the lens capsule. A number of questions were outlined, answers to which would give a clearer insight into the nature, etiology and significance of exfoliation. The 2 unusual cases of exfoliation which I shall report here relate particularly to a number of these original questions : Do the zonular fibers attach themselves to the capsule so as to form a superficial capsule layer, the so-called zonular-lamellar layer, and does this layer extend all the way around the lens? Does pathologic involvement of the most superficial layer of the lens capsule indicate pathologic involvement of the zonule and, since the zonule is supposedly derived from the tertiary vitreous, pathologic involvement of the vitreous ? If the zonule is affected