[Significance of immediate affixation of a hard contact lens in the emergency treatment of severe alkali burns of the cornea (case report)].

BACKGROUND

Severe alkali burns lead to massive limbal stem cell damage resulting in persistent epithelial defects, infiltration and stromal melting early in the disease process. A glued-on hard contact lens may serve as an "artificial epithelium" and protect the cornea from these complications.

CASE REPORT

A 39-year-old male presented with severe lime burns in both eyes one week after injury. The right eye showed a totally denuded cornea and conjunctiva with circular paralimbic ischemia. In the left eye "only" two thirds of the cornea and adjacent conjunctiva and limbus were affected with less ischemia. Amniotic membrane transplantation was performed in both eyes but failed after four days already in the right eye. A hard contact lens was therefore glued on the right eye and allowed for visual acuity of 0.4 without correction in this primarily most heavily afflicted eye for 12 months duration. After removal of the contact lens, reepithelisation was quick, and function remained stable with addition of autologous serum eye drops. The primarily far less injured left eye, however, for which the amniotic membrane surgery was primarily judged to be adequate, could not be stabilised. The cornea perforated 4 weeks later necessitating a mini-keratoplasty plus a glued-on contact lens, and correctable vision never became better than 1/35.

CONCLUSION

The clinical course confirms former observations that a glued-on hard contact lens is an effective treatment early after alkali burn and prevents the cornea from infiltration and melting. Moreover, two aspects merit consideration: first, with proper technique and timing of the gluing-on a patient may retain useful vision throughout the period of wearing the contact lens; second, for the long period during which the cornea was sealed by the contact lens, improper repopulation by conjunctival epithelium was inhibited, and proper corneal epithelium was given a chance for repopulation after recovery of the limbal area resulting in a stable surface and useful vision without additional keratoplasty measures.