Abstract
Purpose: :
To evaluate human corneas after AlphaCor (Cooper Vision Surgical, Inc., Lake Forest, CA) artificial cornea using confocal microscopy.
Methods: :
Three women (average age, 73 years; right eye, 1; left eye, 2) were included in this study. After a superior limbal wound was created, an intrastromal pocket was dissected, and the AlphaCor artificial cornea was placed in the corneal stromal pocket. No conjunctival flap was used in any eyes. After stage 1 surgery, the corneas were evaluated at day 1, and 2 and 9 months postoperatively using the Nidek Confoscan 2 confocal microscopy.
Results: :
All corneas had fine uniform intrastromal striae, much smaller than those seen after penetrating keratoplasty. There was a paucity of activated keratocytes in all corneas. No inflammatory cells were seen in any corneas. There was increased interface reflectivity. No corneal nerve thickening was seen. The corneal epithelium was mildly edematous as preoperatively. All corneas had a homogeneous stroma, representative of a silent cornea.
Conclusions: :
This study showed that the AlphaCor artificial cornea is highly biocompatible and well tolerated by human corneas. This is the first confocal microscopic study of human corneas after implantation of the artificial AlphaCor cornea.
Keywords: cornea: stroma and keratocytes • cornea: clinical science • cornea: basic science