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. 2017 Oct 18;10(10):1611-1613.
doi: 10.18240/ijo.2017.10.20. eCollection 2017.

In situ cornea harvesting through the Red Cross Organization: a new approach to relieving severe cornea donor shortage in Chinese eye banks

Su-Xia Li  1 , Fu-Hua Wang  1 , Ting Wang  1 , Sha-Sha Han  2 , Wei-Yun Shi  1
Affiliations

In situ cornea harvesting through the Red Cross Organization: a new approach to relieving severe cornea donor shortage in Chinese eye banks

Su-Xia Li et al. Int J Ophthalmol. .

Abstract

Corneal diseases are currently the second main cause of blindness in China. Although most of the corneal blindness could be treated by corneal transplantation, only about 10 000 operations were carried out each year owing to the severe shortage of corneal donors and limited eye bank programs. A feasible cornea donation program was established through the organization of the Red Cross, and in situ corneal removal techniques were developed to avoid conflicts with Chinese traditions of keeping the deceased intact. The number of donated corneas, which had a safe and secure quality, increased significantly year by year.

Keywords: cornea; donor; eye bank; transplantation.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Process of obtaining corneas in situ
Puncture the anterior chamber using a 15° straight knife from 1-2 mm outside of the edge of cornea (A), and then inject Healon to the anterior chamber to protect the endothelium (B); cut off the cornea with 1 to 2 mm sclera (C). The sclera is cut with scissors for 360 degrees at 2 mm posterior to the limbus (D).
Figure 2
Figure 2. The number of donor corneas from 2007 to 2016 in the Shandong Red Cross Eye Bank.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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