Purpose:The incidence of and risk factors for cystoid macular edema (CME) after Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) remain uncertain. This study examines the incidence of and risk factors for CME after DMEK.Methods:This retrospective, single-center study included patients with no history of CME who had undergone DMEK. Patients were examined weekly for 1 month after surgery and at 3 and 6 months after surgery. Follow-up examinations included visual acuity (VA) assessment, pachymetry, anterior segment optical coherence tomography, biomicroscopy, intraocular pressure measurement, and fundoscopy. Eyes suspected of having CME (reduced VA and/or abnormal fundoscopic findings) underwent macular optical coherence tomography. Potential risk factors for CME examined included age, axial length, anterior chamber rebubbling, not using a topical nonsteroidal antiinflammatory after surgery, and concurrent DMEK and cataract surgery (triple-DMEK).Results:Eighty eyes (74 subjects) were included. Eleven eyes (13.8%) developed CME within 6 months after undergoing DMEK. Univariate analyses did not identify any significant CME risk factors. Interestingly, the triple-DMEK procedure did not put subjects at risk for developing CME (P = 0.184). Visual prognosis after medical treatment for CME was excellent, and subjects with and without CME had comparable VA at 6 months [CME: logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) VA = 0.3 (first–third quartile: 0.1–1.0), 20/40; no CME: logMAR VA = 0.3 (0.1–0.5), 20/40; P = 0.391].Conclusions:Although CME frequently occurred after DMEK, no CME risk factors were identified. In addition, CME did not significantly affect long-term visual outcomes when it was appropriately treated.

The purpose of this article is to examine outcomes of Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) performed with cornea bank (CB) prestripped tissue and surgeon stripped tissue (SST).This retrospective study examined subjects who underwent DMEK with CB or surgeon prepared tissue for Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), corneal thickness, endothelial cell count (ECC), and complications were examined before and throughout a 6-month postoperative period.Eleven CB and 22 SST subjects were included. Six months after surgery, BCVA was 20/20 or better in 36.4% of CB and 22.7% of SST subjects (P = .43). Median logMAR BCVA was 0.10 (0.00–0.20, 20/25) in group CB and 0.10 (0.10–0.30, 20/25) in group SST. Median preoperative corneal thickness was 614.0 μm (577.5–662.0 μm) and 658.0 μm (606.0–689.0 μm) in CB and SST subjects, respectively (P = .37). Six months after surgery, median corneal thickness was lower in the CB group (571.0 μm [478.0–592.0 μm]), than in the SST group (576.0 μm [531.0–607.0 μm], P = .02). At 6 months, median ECC was 1500.0 cell/mm2 (1321.5–2049.0 cell/mm2, 41% decrease) in group CB and 1403.0 cell/mm2 (972.5–2010.7 cell/mm2, 46% decrease) in group SST (P = .70). Rebubbling was required in 5 CB (45.5%) and 15 SST (68.2%) subjects (P = .39).Fuchs’ dystrophy patients have good anatomic and functional DMEK results. Similar outcomes and complication rates occurred with eye bank and surgeon prepared donor tissue.

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Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty (DMEK) selectively replaces the damaged posterior part of the cornea. However, the DMEK technique relies on a manually-performed dissection that is time-consuming, requires training and presents a potential risk of endothelial graft damages leading to surgery postponement when performed by surgeons in the operative room. To validate precut corneal tissue preparation for DMEK provided by a cornea bank in order to supply a quality and security precut endothelial tissue. The protocol was a technology transfer from the Netherlands Institute for Innovative Ocular Surgery (NIIOS) to Lyon Cornea Bank, after formation in NIIOS to the DMEK "no touch" dissection technique. The technique has been validated in selected conditions (materials, microscope) and after a learning curve, cornea bank technicians prepared endothelial tissue for DMEK. Endothelial cells densities (ECD) were evaluated before and after preparation, after storage and transport to the surgery room. Microbiological and histological controls have been done. Twenty corneas were manually dissected; 18 without tears. Nineteen endothelial grafts formed a double roll. The ECD loss after cutting was 3.3 % (n = 19). After transportation 7 days later, we found an ECD loss of 25 % (n = 12). Three days after cutting and transportation, we found 2.1 % of ECD loss (n = 7). Histology found an endothelial cells monolayer lying on Descemet membrane. The mean thickness was 12 ± 2.2 µm (n = 4). No microbial contamination was found (n = 19). Endothelial roll stability has been validated at 3 days in our cornea bank. Cornea bank technicians trained can deliver to surgeons an ECD controlled, safety and ready to use endothelial tissue, for DMEK by "no touch" technique, allowing time saving, quality and security for surgeons.

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