Abstract
Purpose: :
Endothelial cell loss in patients after InjEK, a novel endothelial transplantation procedure involving insertion of ultra-thin posterior corneal grafts (40-60 um) using an injector cartridge through a corneal incision, has not been previously examined.
Methods: :
In 8 patients who underwent InjEK, pre-operative endothelial cell counts of grafts were compared to post-operative cell counts at 3 and 6 months. Pre-operative central corneal thickness (CCT) measurements of the host were also compared to post-operative CCT measurements at 3 and 6 months.
Results: :
Endothelial cell density of grafts decreased from 3091.9 ± 198.4 cells/mm2 ± SD to 2126.7 ± 318.6 cells/mm2 3 months after InjEK, a reduction of 32.2 ± 11.1%. Endothelial cell density of grafts 6 months after InjEK decreased to 2009.1 ± 218.8 cells/mm2, a reduction of 35.1 ± 9.5%. CCT of hosts decreased from 711.3 ± 161.8 µm to 590.2 ± 63 µm at 3 months after InjEK and 593.5 ± 45.6 µm at 6 months after InjEK.
Conclusions: :
Injector-assisted Endothelial Keratoplasty (InjEK) can be performed under topical anesthesia through a 2.75 mm clear corneal cataract incision. Endothelial cell density loss 3 and 6 months after InjEK is comparable to published rates after Descemet’s Stripping Endothelial Keratoplasty (DSEK).
Keywords: cornea: endothelium • transplantation • cornea: clinical science