The injection of DisCoVisc into the anterior chamber improved corneal preservation and transplantation for cornea blind patients.

PURPOSE

In this study, we aimed to provide a new method of corneal preservation by injecting DisCoVisc into the anterior chamber of eyeballs and evaluate its efficiency for corneal transplantation.

METHODS

Three pairs of eyeballs (n=6) were preserved by DisCoVisc viscoelastic agent, and the corneas were stored for 1 to 6 days. Then, the structure and morphology of cornea were analyzed by hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The corneas preserved by this method were transplanted into 15 patients with corneal disease and the efficacy was assessed.

RESULTS

Epithelial cells and endothelial cells were intact and a normal morphology was preserved in both fresh corneas and corneas stored for 1-6 days by DisCoVisc viscoelastic agent. Corneal endothelial cells did not appear apoptosis in fresh corneas and corneas stored for 1-3 days, whereas a few apoptosis positive cells were shown on the 4 day. The results of TEM showed that all corneas had active corneal endothelial cells with normal nuclei and homogenous nucleoplasm. Desmosomes and hemidesmosomes were closely connected. Mild nuclear pyknosis and autophagic cell death were only found from the 6 day, and mitochondria appeared a little bubble from the 5 day. Visual acuity in 11 of the 15 patients receiving transplantation of the preserved corneas was improved by more than 0.5. Average corneal endothelial cell counts, areas of corneal endothelial cells, and CV% of average area were not affected during the 6-month follow-up. Compared to the values obtained one-month postoperatively, the values of corneal thickness were significantly reduced in the three-month and six-month periods.

CONCLUSIONS

Corneal preservation technology with the injection of DisCoVisc viscoelastic agent may effectively extend the preservation time of corneas for five days, which could be used for patients as penetrating keratoplasty surgery.