Laser Eye Surgery - Ohio - Greater Ohio Eye Surgeons, Inc.

Corneal Transplants

Corneal problems can happen to anyone at any age. If something such as disease, injury or infection damages the cornea, it can become cloudy or warped. A damaged cornea distorts light as it travels into the eye, affecting your vision. It may even cause you pain. The result: eye problems that can disrupt you life.

TRANSPLANTS are the replacement of damaged or diseased tissue or organs with healthy tissue or organs. The cornea was one of the first parts of the body to be transplanted, and corneal transplants remain one of the most common…and most successful…of all transplant procedures. During the procedure, part of a cloudy or warped cornea is replaced with a graft from a healthy cornea, which comes from an eye bank. If the procedure is successful and the new cornea heals without problems, vision can be greatly improved.

Across the county, eye banks operate 24 hours a day to provide healthy replacement corneas for people who need transplants. The eye bank collects, evaluates, and stores donated corneas so they're available when needed. Corneas used in transplants are collected from recently deceased human donors. To protect the recipient of the cornea, the donor's cause of death and medical history are carefully screened. Blood tests are done to ensure that no contagious disease, such as AIDS or hepatitis, is present. The donated cornea may be used right away, or the eye bank may store it for a short period of time.