Serum ornithine levels in some ocular disorders.

The fact that Chinese have a high occurrence of myopia and the toxicity of ornithine to retinal epithelial cells raised our interest to investigate the serum ornithine levels in high myopic patients. After analyzing several hundred patients, no significant difference in the serum ornithine level was found between Chinese and non-Chinese. However, patients with various ocular disorders did show higher ornithine levels. Serum citrulline levels in myobes and non-Chinese groups were decreased. The significance of these findings needs further investigation.