Abstract
Purpose: :
Eye banks in Taiwan do not require measuring the endothelial cell density (ECD) of donor corneas prior to transplantation. In this study, we sought to compare post-operative ECD and clinical outcomes of penetrating keratoplasties (PKP) performed in Taiwan using local versus imported (where ECD is measured pre-operatively) cornea donor tissues.
Methods: :
Retrospective chart review of all eyes which underwent PKP from 2004 to 2010 at National Taiwan University Hospital. Patients without post-operative ECD measurements were consented prospectively for ECD measurement during routine follow-up. Exclusion criteria included recipient age less than ten, history of prior glaucoma filtering procedures, prior keratoplasty, and limbal stem cell deficiency.
Results: :
Of the 210 eyes included in the study, 121 eyes received local tissue and 89 eyes received imported tissue. ECD measurements were obtained prospectively in 48 eyes. There was no significant difference in ECD between local versus imported tissue after adjusting for length of post-operative follow-up at ECD measurement and donor age (p=0.887). There was no significant difference in one month and one year post-operative visual acuities between the two groups. The donor age of the local tissue was significantly younger than the age of the imported tissue (mean of 52.9 years for local donors and mean of 63.6 years for imported donors, p<0.001). There was no significant difference between local versus imported tissue in regard to donor gender, donor death-to-graft preservation time, and donor death-to-transplantation time.
Conclusions: :
Despite not measuring pre-operative ECD in local donor tissue, there was no difference in ECD between local versus imported PKP tissue post-operatively. There was no difference in post-operative visual acuity between the two groups despite a younger donor age of the local tissue.
Keywords: transplantation • cornea: clinical science • cornea: endothelium