AIMS The aim of this work was to investigate different surgical options for the repair of the ocular surface, using various extensions of the procedure of limbal stem cell allotransplantation. METHODS/RESULTS Straightforward lamellar limbal transplantation was performed in one patient with contact lens induced limbal stem cell failure. A second patient with a neoplastic corneal lesion underwe...

PURPOSE To evaluate by impression cytology (IC) the corneal surface of live limbal tissue donor eyes for autograft or allograft limbal stem cell transplantation (LSCT). METHODS Twenty limbal donors were enrolled (17 for autograft LSCT and 3 for allograft). Impression cytology was performed before transplantation of superior and inferior limbal grafts and after the third postoperative month. ...

OBJECTIVE To describe the early results of penetrating keratoplasty (PKP) in patients who had previously undergone cultivated limbal epithelium transplantation. METHODS Medical records of patients with limbal stem cell deficiency due to chemical burns who underwent PKP after cultivated limbal epithelium transplantation were reviewed for demographics, primary etiology, type of limbal transplan...

The depletion of limbal stem cells due to various diseases leads to corneal opacification and visual loss. The unequivocal identification and isolation of limbal stem cells may be a considerable advantage because long-term, functional recovery of corneal epithelium is linked to graft constructs that retain viable stem cell populations. As specific markers of limbal stem cells, the ATP-binding c...

purpose: to investigate the outcomes of keratolimbal allograft (klal) for treatment of total limbal stem cell deficiency (lscd). method: patients with total lscd and adequate tear production were included. a total of 27 klal procedures were performed in 21 eyes of 20 patients with lscd. immunosuppression was achived using mycophenolate and cyclosporine. main outcome measure was improvement in v...

OBJECTIVE To minimize the risk to the donor eye when a conjunctival limbal autograft is performed for unilateral total limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD), a new approach has been reported of expanding limbal epithelial progenitor cells from a small limbal biopsy cultured on amniotic membrane (AM). Herein, we present for the first time the morphologic and phenotypic outcome of one such patient. ...

Chemical injuries of the eye may produce extensive damage to the ocular surface epithelium, cornea, and anterior segment, resulting in permanent unilateral or bilateral visual impairment. Pathophysiological events which may influence the final visual prognosis and which are amenable to therapeutic modulation include 1) ocular surface injury, repair, and differentiation, 2) corneal stromal matri...

BACKGROUND/AIM Chemical ocular burn, especially by alkali, may result in damage to the limbal stem cells, fundamental in maintaining the integrity of ocular surface. Clinically, patients manifest abnormal conjunctival-corneal healing with peripheral neovessels, chronic epithelial defect, severe stromal inflammation, and conjunctivalisation of the corneal, which is characteristic of limbal defic...

PURPOSE To develop a device that facilitates the procurement of corneal limbal stem cell grafts for keratolimbal allograft procedures used in the treatment of ocular surface disease associated with stem cell deficiency. DESIGN Description of device design and technique for use. METHODS The device is composed of a pedestal with a convex surface mounted to a flat platform. A corneoscleral but...