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Good results seen in pilot study of stromal enhancement technique in patients with advanced keratoconus
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LISBON, Portugal — Minimally invasive transplantation of a thin lamina of decellularized stroma, with or without the addition of autologous mesenchymal stem cells, might benefit eyes with advanced keratoconus, improving vision and delaying the need for more invasive graft surgery.
At the EuCornea meeting, Jorge Alió del Barrio, MD, presented the results of a pilot study in which nine patients with advanced keratoconus were implanted with human decellularized donor femto-dissected 120 µm thick corneal stroma grafts, with or without the addition of the patient’s own mesenchymal stem cells.
“We were able to demonstrate that these grafts do not induce rejection and improve all keratometric and visual parameters. Thickness improves, and this translates into functional rehabilitation. Advanced cases go back to a more mild-to-moderate stage, which enables them to receive treatments like corneal collagen cross-linking or intracorneal rings,” he said.
Further studies with larger samples are still required to confirm the validity of this technique, but these encouraging results are opening a new field of research and treatment for these patients.
Alió del Barrio emphasized that this technique is intended for patients in the advanced stages of the disease who are no longer eligible for less invasive options and are candidates for corneal transplantation.
“Corneal transplantation has drawbacks like rejection and slow recovery. Our technique is not an alternative, but rather a way to set the clock back. It only takes 3 minutes under topical anesthesia and might create a suitable substrate for less invasive techniques, postponing or maybe avoiding transplantation,” Alió del Barrio said. – by Michela Cimberle
Reference:
Alió del Barrio J. Corneal stroma enhancement by decellularized stromal grafts transplantation for advanced keratoconus. Presented at EuCornea; Oct. 6-7, 2017; Lisbon, Portugal.
Disclosure: Alió del Barrio reports no relevant financial disclosures.