Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose:To analyze the indications and outcomes of amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT) for ocular surface disorders. Methods:Retrospective chart review of all patients who underwent AMT for ocular surface disorders in a tertiary eye care center between January 1998 and May 2001. Results:: In all, 360 patients (377 eyes) with median age 33 years (range 3 months to 86 years) were included. The median follow-up duration was 4 months. The major clinical conditions included pterygium (35%), chemical burns (18%), Stevens Johnson syndrome (9%), sterile epithelial defects (9%) and others (29%). The AMT was performed to initiate ocular surface reconstruction (71%), promote healing of epithelial defect (19%), alleviate stem cell deficiency (5%), and provide symptomatic relief (5%). The overall success rate was 68%. The best outcome was for surface reconstruction following excision of ocular surface squamous neoplasia (100%) and worst outcome was in cases with epithelial defect due to infectious etiology (50%). Repeat AMT was performed in 22% cases. On multivariate analysis the presence of symblepharon and infectious etiology were the factors predictive of poor outcome. Conclusion:Preserved human amniotic membrane transplantation seems to be safe and effective modality in the management of ocular surface disorders. However, in view of the sub-optimal results for some of the clinical conditions, stringent case selection is recommended.
Keywords: 369 cornea: clinical science • 372 cornea: epithelium • 607 transplantation