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Case Reports
. 2021 Apr 16;12(1):254-258.
doi: 10.1159/000509847. eCollection 2021 Jan-Apr.

Temporary Kerato-Prosthesis to Resolve Traumatic Loss of a Healed Corneal Button

Alessandra Balestrazzi  1 , Alessandro Di Maggio  2 , Paolo Michieletto  1 , Gianluca Martone  2 , Angelo Balestrazzi  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Temporary Kerato-Prosthesis to Resolve Traumatic Loss of a Healed Corneal Button

Alessandra Balestrazzi et al. Case Rep Ophthalmol. .

Abstract

The aim of this study is to report a rare case of traumatic complete loss of a donor corneal button successfully resolved by a 24-h implantation of a temporary kerato-prosthesis. A healthy 30-year-old man with a history of prior penetrating keratoplasty (PKP) presented with an open globe following accidental contusive trauma with a ball, while he was playing football. At slit-lamp evaluation, complete dehiscence of the wound at the graft-host junction and complete corneal button loss was evident. The patient was immediately taken to the operating room, but a donor cornea was not available; therefore, a vitreo-retinal temporary kerato-prosthesis was implanted to close the eyeball until a new donor cornea was available. In case of complete dehiscence of the donor-host junction after PKP with corneal button loss, it is possible to use a temporary kerato-prosthesis to stabilize the eye and contain the intraocular structures. We recommend the availability of temporary vitreo-retinal kerato-prosthesis in the operating theatres of Corneal Surgical Units.

Keywords: Corneal button loss; Temporary kerato-prosthesis; Trauma.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
First post-operative day: anterior segment with implanted kerato-prosthesis (a) and fundus and optic nerve (b).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
One year post-operative: corneal button with single stitches (a) and retro-illuminated anterior segment (b).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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