Abstract
Purpose:
To evaluate the safety and efficacy of thin lenticule descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) using a single-pass Microkeratome technique
Methods:
Ten cases of endothelial disorder [4-pseudophakic bullous keratopathy, 3- fuch’s endothelial dystrophy, 3- congenital hereditary endothelial dystrophy (CHED), and 1-regraft] underwent the procedure. Intraoperative pachymetry was done for all donor tissues mounted on artificial chamber. Donor lenticule was prepared with a single pass Carriazo Barraquer microkeratome (Moria, Antony, France) with the cutting head depth of 400µm. Sutureless DSAEK was performed in all cases through a 3.5mm corneoscleral tunnel and using Busin glide for graft insertion. The main outcome measures were best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and graft thickness (with anterior segment optical coherence tomography).
Results:
At 6 month the mean log MAR BCVA was 0.19±0.11. The mean donor lenticule thickness was 132.63 ±39.52µm. The mean intraoperative endothelial cell loss was 26.5±1.4%.No perforation occurred during donor preparation. No significant intraoperative or postoperative complication was noted in any of the cases. No difficulty in graft manipulation was encountered during surgery.
Conclusions:
The technique of single pass thin lenticule DSAEK is safe and effective without any intraoperative complications. It provides optimal visual outcome and may be an alternative to double pass microkeratome technique.
Keywords: 481 cornea: endothelium