The cornea is a transparent film that allows the light to pass into the eye and helps in focusing so that images appear clearly. It’s a tissue covering the front of the eye and has five layers.
The cornea can get damaged due to several causes – injury, bacterial infections or even due to heredity. A cornea transplant at an eye hospital In Dubai restores the lost or weak vision, reduces pain and improved the appearance of the damaged cornea. As a fundamental step, doctors would first recommend prescription glasses, contact lenses and medication to treat the condition. If these fail, the next obvious step would be to opt for the best corneal transplant in Dubai.
Following is a list of conditions that can affect and cause damage to a person’s cornea:
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Fuchs’ dystrophy ( a heredity condition)
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Excessive swelling of the cornea
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Eye diseases like advanced keratoconus
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Scarring due to trichiasis (a condition where eyeglasses grow inwardly and rub against the cornea)
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Complications due to LASIK surgery (although it’s rare)
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The irregular shape of the cornea as well as thinning
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Damage caused by cataract surgery complications
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Chemical burns of the cornea
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Scarring caused by injections such as eye herpes or fungal keratitis
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Graft rejection due to a previous cornea transplant
Preparation for the surgery
The preparation for corneal transplant in Dubai includes:
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Eye exam: and looking for any conditions that might cause complications.
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Measurements of the eye: Done to determine the size of the cornea you’d need.
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Reviewing the medications and supplements you take: You may be advised to stop taking medications before and after the surgery.
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Treatment for other eye problems. Other eye problems can cause complications. The doctor will have to examine in case they might cause any complications.
Possible risks of a cornea transplant
Like any other medical procedure, a cornea transplant also carries some risk, although minimal:
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bleeding
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infection
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swelling
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clouding of the lens, or cataracts
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increased pressure in the eyeball, or glaucoma
Rejection
Approximately 20 per cent of patients reject their donor corneas. But steroid eye drops can control such rejection in many cases. The risk of rejection might decrease over time but doesn’t completely go away. Do seek medical attention from the best eye specialist in Dubai if you see these signs:
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decreasing vision
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redness of the eye
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increasing pain
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increased sensitivity to light
The procedure
Depending on the damage to the cornea, you surgeon at the best hospital in Dubai will decide upon one of the following methods:
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Penetrating keratoplasty (PK): The surgeon has to cut through the entire thickness of the damaged cornea in order to remove a small part of the cornea tissue. It is also called a full-thickness transplant. The donor cornea, cut accordingly, is replaced with the damaged part. Then the surgeon stitches the cornea into place. These stitches might be removed at a later visit.
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Endothelial keratoplasty (EK): In this procedure, the diseased cornea tissue is removed from the back corneal layers and then replaced with the donor cornea. There are two types: Descemet stripping endothelial keratoplasty (DSEK) and Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK). The latter is more complicated and is also commonly used.
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Anterior lamellar keratoplasty (ALK): There are two different types of procedures under this too. The damaged tissue is removed from the front corneal layers. The severity of the damage determines the type of procedure. Superficial Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty (SALK) replaces only the front layers of your cornea, whereas a Deep Anterior Lamellar Transplant (DALK) procedure is used when cornea damage extends deeper.
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Artificial cornea transplant (keratoprosthesis): This is an artificial cornea. This is adopted when some people aren’t eligible for a cornea transplant from an actual donor (keratoprosthesis).
