Corneal Transplant
PKP is a surgical procedure to remove the diseased part of the cornea and replace it with a similarly sized and shaped part of a healthy donor cornea.
Tissue is provided for a variety of surgical eye procedures. Corneas in OptisolTM - GS are available for:
- Penetrating, full-thickness keratoplasty (PKP)
- Keratolimbal allograft (KLAL)
- Deep lamellar endothelial keratoplasty (DLEK)
- Deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK)
- Scleral shells, in 95 percent ETOH, are also available in a variety of sizes.
Corneal transplantations are performed for several reasons, including the following:
- Optical: To improve the optical qualities of the cornea to improve vision by replacing a scarred cornea with a healthy, clear one.
- Reconstructive: To reconstruct a perforated cornea to preserve the eye in its whole form.
- Therapeutic: To treat a disease unresponsive to medical management such as uncontrolled fungal corneal ulcers or to alleviate the pain of a severe foreign-body sensation due to recurrent ruptured blister-like lesions in Bullous Keratopathy.
Click here to view a corneal transplant animation.
Common Indicators
Bullous Keratopathy, Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy, Keratoconus, Repeat Graft, Keratitis, Viral or Bacterial Problems,
Fungal Ulcers, Perforations, and Corneal Stromal Dystrophies are the most common indications for a corneal
transplant.