Immune reactions after modern lamellar (DALK, DSAEK, DMEK) versus conventional penetrating corneal transplantation

Publication date: Available online 3 July 2019Source: Progress in Retinal and Eye ResearchAuthor(s): Deniz Hos, Mario Matthaei, Felix Bock, Kazuichi Maruyama, Maria Notara, Thomas Clahsen, Yanhong Hou, Viet Nhat Hung Le, Ann-Charlott Salabarria, Jens Horstmann, Bjoern O. Bachmann, Claus CursiefenAbstractIn the past decade, novel lamellar keratoplasty techniques such as Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty (DALK) for anterior keratoplasty and Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK)/Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) for posterior keratoplasty have been developed. DALK eliminates the possibility of endothelial allograft rejection, which is the main reason for graft failure after penetrating keratoplasty (PK). Compared to PK, the risk of endothelial graft rejection is significantly reduced after DSAEK/DMEK. Thus, with modern lamellar techniques, the clinical problem of endothelial graft rejection seems to be nearly solved in the low-risk situation. However, even with lamellar grafts there are epithelial, subepithelial and stromal immune reactions in DALK and endothelial immune reactions in DSAEK/DMEK, and not all keratoplasties can be performed in a lamellar fashion. Therefore, endothelial graft rejection in PK is still highly relevant, especially in the “high-risk” setting, where the cornea's (lymph)angiogenic and immune privilege is lost due to severe inflammation and pathological neovascularization. For these eyes, currently available t...
Source: Progress in Retinal and Eye Research - Category: Opthalmology Source Type: research