Corneal
transplant surgery involves the removal of a patient’s diseased or
damaged cornea and replacing it with a healthy donor cornea. The
cornea is the clear element at the front of the human eye, which begins
to refract (focus) incoming light and pass it through to the inner
eye. When the cornea becomes misshapen, cloudy, scarred or otherwise
damaged, there are a variety of treatments available. An
ophthalmologist resorts to a corneal transplant when other methods of
treatment have been exhausted. The corneal transplant is the most
commonly performed, and most successful, of all transplant surgeries.
Reasons for considering a corneal transplant:
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Complications from other eye surgery resulting in failure of the cornea.
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Dystrophy of the cornea.
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Eye trauma resulting in corneal scarring.
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Hereditary problems with the cornea.
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Keratoconus, a disease in which the cornea degenerates into a steep cone shape.
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Rejection of a previous corneal transplant.
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Various corneal infections that lead to scarring, including herpes viruses.
Doctors usually prefer to exhaust other,
non-invasive forms of treatment first. However, when problems of
vision and/or pain can no longer be treated with glasses, contacts,
pharmaceuticals or other specialized treatments, corneal transplant
surgery is a viable solution.
The Procedure
Once the decision is made to undergo corneal
transplant surgery, a suitable donor cornea must be obtained. This is
done through an eye bank. Each potential donor is carefully screened,
both for diseases that could be transmitted and for clarity. The
surgery is usually an outpatient procedure. In preparation the doctor
may choose either a local or general anesthetic, whichever is most
appropriate for the patient. A speculum is used to hold the eye open.
The surgeon uses a trephine (circular) blade to
extract the host cornea. A similar portion of tissue is cut from the
donor cornea, and placed in the host eye. This is then sutured with
extremely thin stitching. The doctor administers antibiotic eye drops,
then a patch over the eye.
The Recovery
The patient is advised to rest the day of the
surgery. There will be a post-operative appointment with the doctor
the next day. After this, the patient may resume gentle tasks and
activities, but must wear glasses or a shield to protect the eye, and
administer eye drops as instructed by the physician. After a week,
more strenuous activities (like exercise) may be carefully resumed.
The stitches may be left in the eye anywhere from a few months to a
year or longer. The patient must continue to remain vigilant for signs
of complication, and contact the eye doctor immediately upon any
abnormal occurrence.
If you have questions or would like to meet with the doctor, we encourage you to contact us today to schedule a consultation.
In addition to treating a range of common eye conditions, Dr. Casey also specializes in performing laser eye surgery. He is one of the leading LASIK, PRK and LASEK Las Vegas surgeons. Other procedures that Dr. Casey offers include cataract surgery with implantation of advanced IOLs, such as ReZoom, ReStor or Crystalens, and presbyopia treatment in Las Vegas.
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