About Cornea transplant (Keratoplasty)

Surgery and transplant is used as the last action in all organs. In other words, if you went through all therapeutic courses and did necessary examinations and follow-up but you didn’t get outcome, you are a candidate for cornea transplant, but as the last therapeutic step.

What is cornea transplant?

Partial transplant of cornea (deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty, DALK) or total cornea transplant (pk(pankeratoplasty) , complete cornea transplant), from a donor to a receiver who has visual disorder because of damage to cornea. Each perfect cornea can be used at least for 3 patients in the partial transplant.

This transplant is usually successful due to the lack of blood and lymphatic vessels in the donated cornea and compatibility with every blood type (consider 10 – 20 percent of rejection; of course, this can be treated with immediate reference to doctor). Cornea transplant is performed in infants and older people who have the conditions of surgery and transplant. Depending on physical conditions of patient under complete or local anesthesia, this surgery will take 1 – 2 hours./ Corneal transplantation

Why transplant?

In a simple sentence, due to cornea damages. But, cornea damages creation has different causes:

● Keratoconus: transformation of cornea shape from domical to conical, causes opacity of vision and sometimes destruction of cornea tissue, that in this situation, after initiative treatments if there was no improvement (about 20% of cornea transplants is related to keratoconus), cornea transplant can be performed.
● keratoleukoma: creation of spot and opacity in cornea, is one of the complications of herpes simplex disease of eyes. If you sometimes feel an external object in your eye, take it serious because it may be a virus in your eye that creates herpes simplex for your eye and eventually spot and keratoleukoma.
● cornea uncler or chemical cornea burn: abrasion by an external object and suspended small objects in the air, can cause pain and in a more severe level, uncler and rupture in cornea. Also, all burns and damages resulting from chemical materials can cause vision opacity, vision ruination and eventually damage to cornea.
● keratitis: keratitis is a side effects of some surgeries like cataract. Although cataract is an easy and successful surgery, but sometimes may be accompanied with complications like keratitis that if it is not followed up, it can cause severe damage to cornea.

What do I do after transplant?

● preventing every kind of stroke especially in surgeried children (stroke is second factor of transplant failure in children)
● do not lift a heavy object at least three months after surgery, do not perform heavy physical works, do not wipe your eyes vigorously and do not sleep on the grafted eye.
● use prescription glasses at least two months after surgury.
● if your job involves a lot of physical activities, take a leave for 6 weeks after transplant. Otherwise, you can go to work after two weeks.
● do not discontinue your medicines and continue your examinations with your doctor up to 1 year after transplant.

Has my transplant been successful?

In Iran, cornea transplant is a successful surgery and many individuals who had this transplant, have acquired their vision partially or completely. If you have these complications after transplant, inform your doctor:
● inflammation and severe pain with red eyes
● reduction of vision
● return of cornea opacity
● feeling the existence of an external object like sand in eye
●sensitivity to light

transplant rejection happens rarely. When immune system of patient’s body identifies transplanted cornea as an external and stranger tissue and starts to ruin it, the rejection of transplant takes place. This issue may start two weeks to some months after transplant and if it’s not treated on time, can cause opacifying transplanted cornea and sometimes a re-transplant.Since there aren’t blood and lymphatic vessels in this type of transplant and it is compatible with whole blood types.