Corneae from body donors in anatomy department: valuable use for clinical transplantation and experimental research

Abstract

Background: Explanted corneae are highly needed for the surgical management of patients with severe corneal diseases. The aim of this study was to determine whether the body donors from the Institute of Anatomy are a suitable source of donor corneae. Methods: At the Institute of Anatomy at Saarland University Medical Center in Homburg, corneae are prelevated from body donors who had consented to the removal of tissues for transplantation purposes during their lifetime. Following the report of death, the LIONS Eye Bank is informed and the contraindications of corneal explantation are clarified. Obtaining a blood sample within 24 h postmortem is mandatory. Results: The Institute of Anatomy had 150 body donors in the time period from January 2018 to June 2019. Out of these, 68 (45.3%) were reported to the Eye Bank. The age of the donors (median 82 years (range: 57-96)) is not critical since the quality of the corneae depends on the number of endothelial cells (mean: 2109 ± 67 cells/mm 2 (range: 511-2944 cells/mm 2)). Contraindications were present in 19 (12.6%) cases. The corneae were extracted from 49 (32.7%) body donors. Out of these 98 corneae, 46 (46.9%) were successfully transplanted. Of all non-transplanted corneae, 6 (6.1%) were microbiologically contaminated, 10 (10.2%) had a positive serology, 22 (22.5%) had an endothelial cell count < 2000 cells/mm 2 and 6 (6.1%) are at time of this analysis still in culture medium. The nontransplanted tissues were used for research. Conclusions: Explanted corneae from the Institute of Anatomy are a valuable option in obtaining grafts for corneal transplantation, which is why we are working toward on expanding cooperation with this department.

Approval rates for corneal donation and the origin of donor tissue for transplantation at a university-based tertiary referral center with corneal subspecialization hosting a LIONS Eye Bank

“…The corneas transplanted in our facility are derived from deceased persons, including full-body donors in the Department of Anatomy [ 16 , 17 ], multi-organ donors, and donors from external institutions in Germany or other countries (Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Italy). To obtain corneas from the site of the UKS, the employees of the Eye Bank have a permanent internal access to online reports about the deceased, available since 2004 through the internal hospital information system, where deaths are reported in real time by each department According to the German Organ Transplantation Foundation (Deutsche Stiftung Organtransplantation), relatives are asked about the presumed will of the deceased if there is no organ donation card.…”

Prevalence and Impact of Cornea Guttata in the Graft After Penetrating Keratoplasty in Germany

“…It was also found that a high percentage of the discarded grafts were associated with a high donor age (.80 yrs). [17][18][19] The occurrence of CG immediately after PKP suggest that guttae cannot always be reliably detected in the eye bank with the inverted light microscope. However, according to a study performed by Safi et al, 20 several morphological criteria that can be preoperatively detected using inverted light microscopy correlate with the appearance of postoperative CG.…”

“…It was also found that a high percentage of the discarded grafts were associated with a high donor age (>80 yrs). 17–19…”

Review for special issue: Corneal lamellar surgery: Present outcomes and future perspectives

“…If the donor presents no contraindications, the eye bank staff can proceed with the collection of the donor corneas,[ 13 ] using one of the following methods:…”