Contributor: Gordon K. Klintworth
The ciliary body also changes with age. The ciliary processes become longer and more branched with aging. They are also less pigmented when seen gonioscopically. The stroma of the aging ciliary body contains fewer cells and becomes hyalinized, especially in the walls of blood vessels and beneath the epithelium. Deposits of calcium accumulate in the epithelial basal lamina. Sometimes the ciliary processes become entirely hyalinized and contain lipid droplets. Connective tissue gradually invades the ciliary muscles over time. A common age-related lesion of the ciliary body is the Fuchs adenoma. The age-related changes in the ciliary body account in part for presbyopia.