Abstract
Purpose: :
To evaluate the efficacy of multilayer amniotic membrane transplantation compared with corneal path for repairing corneal thinning after infection, immunologic diseases or ocular surgery.
Methods: :
Prospective, comparative, interventional study of nineteen eyes of nineteen patients with corneal thinning after infection or ocular surgery. The mean age was 63,9 years old (range 47-83 years). Eight patients (42%) were female and 11 (58%) male. All patients were operated by the same surgeon and the surgical procedure was randomized in corneal or amniotic membrane graft. Ten patients underwent surgery with corneal graft (52%) and nine with amniotic membrane transplantation (48%). Patients were followed for 180 days.
Results: :
All the eyes that received corneal grafts presented stability of the ocular surface with rapid reepithelialization; on the other hand, most of the eyes that received the amniotic membrane grafts had the transplanted tissue reabsorbed after approximately 30d of the surgery (%). There were a few complications: two patients who underwent surgery with corneal patch (20%) presented corneal graft rejection that was controlled with steroids. Three patients needed to be reoperated: two patients (20%) who underwent corneal graft and one patient (11%) who underwent amniotic membrane transplantation.
Conclusions: :
Our results suggest that both amniotic membrane and corneal grafts are good options to be used for restoring corneal defects with thinning.
Clinical Trial: :
www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT00801073
Keywords: cornea: clinical science • cornea: epithelium • cornea: stroma and keratocytes