![]() ![]() Glaucoma is one of the factors that harms corneal transplant, so the glaucoma must be controlled before or at the time of the corneal transplant. Those patients may require surgery for the glaucoma and surgery for the cornea. The cornea is not affected by glaucoma, but some patients will have both glaucoma and a corneal condition. People with glaucoma have an eye condition where the optic nerve is being damaged, usually by pressure inside the eye that is too high. Are people with glaucoma candidates for this procedure? There are some people who have corneal dystrophies such as Fuchs who also have macular degeneration, and they can benefit from transplantation when the cornea becomes cloudy. Consequently, unless the cornea is also affected in some way, corneal transplantation would not help a patient with macular degeneration. It is a thin tissue that lies in the inside of the eye. The retina is like the photographic film inside a camera. Patients with macular degeneration have a disease of the retina. Would someone with macular degeneration benefit from a corneal transplant? In circumstances where you've lost vision in an eye or you no longer see daylight, there might be exceptions, but otherwise donation would not be acceptable. Under ordinary circumstances, eyes are not the same as kidneys and are generally considered to need both for your best function. You have to discuss with the potential donor the motivation for the donation. At present, there are more than 44,000 corneal transplants done every year, making it the second-most common transplant after blood donation. This procedure has been done routinely since the 1960s. ![]() The first eye bank was established nearly 90 years ago. The first ones were done in the late 1800s. How common is corneal transplantation?Ĭorneal transplantation is not a new procedure. There are newer types of prostheses being developed to substitute for the cornea, but nothing is as useful as a human-donated cornea. For example, some patients with severe scarring of the eye socket, where the lids don't operate normally, might benefit from a keratoprosthesis. It's used where it's impossible to get the donor cornea to take. Probably no more than 400 or 500 of these procedures are done each year worldwide. These are very difficult to use and are still being investigated. There are types of surgery called keratoprostheses, which use artificial corneas. Can artificial tissue be used instead of a donor cornea? Another special circumstance where a person may donate a cornea to themselves is where one eye can still see and one can't. There are no instances of donation between people who are living in other circumstances. If an eye is blind and it is removed, but is healthy in the front, that cornea might also be used. For example a patient who has an ocular tumor in the back of the eye may be able to donate the eye at the time the eye is removed. In very rare circumstances, a donor may be living. Must an eye donor be dead?įor the most part, corneal donation comes from people who are dead. People who are completely blind and cannot see light cannot benefit from any type of corneal transplantation. Is it possible to help someone who is completely blind? You can be an eye donor and help two or more people. In addition to the cornea, other parts of the eye including the sclera or white part of the eye are used in some types of oculoplastic surgery and in glaucoma surgery. The cornea is the clear part of the eye much like a watch crystal. Patients who need a corneal transplant are those who have a disease, scar, or active infection involving the cornea. Referring to reception of the tissue, eye tissue is used several different ways, most commonly for corneal transplantation. Who is an ideal candidate for an eye donation? ![]()
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