Study: Donor stem cell grafts help restore corneal surface

Two separate studies have shown that donor stem cell grafts can be useful in restoring damaged corneal surfaces. Consecutive surgical procedures and long-term use of an anticancer drug were also found to be helpful.

When a patient has only one damaged cornea, stem cells from the other eye can be used to reconstruct the damaged cornea without immunologic rejection of the transplanted cells. If both corneas are damaged, however, the grafting of donor cells from a living relative or cadaver is necessary.

In the first of two studies published in the July issue of Ophthalmology, researchers in Chiba, Japan, showed there is no difference in outcome between grafting donor limbal stem cells directly onto the patient's damaged cornea and cultivating stem cells on an amniotic membrane that is then grafted onto the damaged cornea. Of 13 eyes treated, regeneration of the corneal surface was achieved over a period of 12 to 28 days in six eyes (three from each of the grafting techniques).

A second study, from the Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead, England, showed a graft survival rate of 54.4% at 1 year, 33.3% at 2 years and 27.3% at 3 years. Visual acuity improved or was unchanged in 83% of eyes. Cyclosporine, an anticancer drug, was initially used in high-risk patients and later in all patients.