Optical Coherence Tomography Imaging of Human Lacrimal Glands: An In Vivo Study

Humans have main lacrimal glands and accessory lacrimal glands. The main lacrimal glands comprise the orbital and palpebral lobes, which are located in the superotemporal area of the orbit. The palpebral lobe lies below the aponeurosis of the levator palpebrae superioris and is in contact with the superior and lateral conjunctival fornices.1 Even in healthy subjects, the palpebral lobe is seen through the conjunctiva when the eyelid is elevated. Therefore, optical coherence tomography (OCT) scanning of the exposed palpebral lobe can be used to visualize the parenchyma of the palpebral lobe just beneath the conjunctiva.