A recent study found no significant difference in best spectacle-corrected visual acuity between patients receiving dehydrated corneas and those receiving standard organ culture-stored corneas for deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty at 12 months postoperatively.
This prospective, randomized, single-center trial evaluated the outcomes of deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK) using dehydrated versus standard organ culture-stored donor corneas in patients with keratoconus. Sixty adult patients (≥18 years) scheduled for elective DALK were randomized intraoperatively to receive either dehydrated (n = 30) or standard organ culture-stored (n = 30) donor corneas. The primary outcome measured was BSCVA at 12 months postoperatively, with secondary outcomes including refractive astigmatism (RA), endothelial cell density (ECD), and complication rates.
The results, published in Ophthalmology, indicated no significant differences in best spectacle-corrected visual acuity (BSCVA) between the groups at both 6 and 12 months. The mean difference at 6 months was 0.030 logMAR (95% CI, –0.53 to 0.10; P = 0.471), and at 12 months, –0.013 logMAR (95% CI, –0.10 to 0.08; P = 0.764). Additionally, no significant differences were observed in postoperative RA and ECD at any time point. Although an epithelial defect was noted more frequently in the dehydrated cornea group within the first 3 days post-DALK (97% vs. 33% in the standard group), complete re-epithelialization was achieved by day 7 in all patients.
The study concludes that dehydrated corneas are non-inferior to standard organ culture-stored corneas for DALK, offering a potential method for long-term corneal preservation.
The authors reported no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article.