Thickening of Ectatic Cornea through Regeneration Using Decellularized Corneal Matrix Injectable Hydrogel: A Strategic Advancement to Mitigate Corneal Ectasia.

Ectatic corneal diseases are a group of eye disorders characterized by progressive thinning and outward bulging of the cornea, resulting in vision impairment. A few attempts have been made to use cornea-derived extracellular matrix hydrogels for corneal tissue engineering; however, no studies have investigated its application in corneal ectasia. In this study, we have first developed an animal surgical model that mimics a few specific phenotypes of ectatic cornea. Later, we investigated the potential of decellularized cornea matrix hydrogels (dCMH) from both human and bovine sources in increasing the thickness of the cornea in the developed surgical model. Our data advocate that surgical stromal depletion can be followed to establish ectatic models and can also provide information on the biocompatibility of materials, its integration with native stroma, degradation over time, and tissue remodeling. We observed that dCMH from both sources could integrate with ectatic thin corneal stroma and helps in regaining the thickness by regenerating a reasonably functional and transparent stroma; however, no significant difference was spotted between the dCMH made from human and bovine corneal tissue sources. Hence, this study is a promising step toward developing a non-invasive technique for the treatment of corneal ectasia by using dCMH.

Cultivated limbal epithelial transplantation and penetrating keratoplasty postchemical injury: a 14-year follow-up.

An 11-year-old girl presented to our tertiary eye care centre with a 9-month-old history of lime injury in the left eye in 1999 with vision of counting fingers close to the face. She initially underwent superficial keratectomy with amniotic membrane graft in 1999. Subsequently, cultivated limbal epithelial transplantation was performed in 2001 which improved her vision to 20/400. Following development of pannus and symblepharon in the left eye, she underwent pannus resection and conjunctival limbal autograft in 2002 and, a month later, optical penetrating keratoplasty (PK) following which her vision improved to 20/125. She was under regular follow-up, underwent exotropia correction and subsequent levator palpebrae superioris resection for ptosis and was maintaining good vision. On her last follow-up 14 years after PK in 2016, her vision in the left eye was 20/40 with lipid keratopathy and her right eye showed no signs of focal limbal stem cell deficiency.

Outcomes of cataract surgery in ocular cicatricial pemphigoid.

PURPOSE: To report the outcomes of cataract surgery in ocular cicatricial pemphigoid (OCP). SETTING: L. V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, India. DESIGN: Retrospective, interventional case series. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with OCP who had undergone cataract surgery were included. Staging of disease, type of surgery, pre- and postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and number and duration of topical and systemic medications were recorded. Complications and any exacerbation or worsening of disease were noted. RESULTS: Nine eyes of 7 patients (3 male, 4 female) were included in the study, with mean age of 60.44 ± 2.6 years (range 56-64 years). Follow-up ranged from 6 months to 10 years (mean 52.9 ± 46.25 months). Surgery performed was extracapsular cataract extraction with posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation (n = 5) or phacoemulsification with posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation (n = 4). Best-corrected visual acuity improved by more than 2 lines in 6 of 9 (66.67%) eyes, which remained stable till the last follow-up. Three eyes had no visual improvement due to corneal scar in 2 patients and preexisting posterior staphyloma in 1 eye. Disease progression was noted in 2 of 9 operated eyes by one stage at the end of 1 year. CONCLUSION: In this series, cataract surgery could be safely performed with no major intra- or postoperative complications. While the surgical intervention itself was not associated with acute exacerbations of inflammation, progression of disease was noted in some cases over time. In spite of ongoing disease, cataract surgery in OCP was associated with stable visual outcomes.

Parasitic infections of the external eye.

OBJECTIVE: To review the published literature on parasitic infections of external eye. METHODS: Published articles and case reports on parasitic infections of external eye were reviewed and relevant information was collected. RESULTS: Parasitic infections of the eye are rare. However, being more commonly seen in developing nations, they require active measures for screening, diagnosis, and therapy. Parasites of importance causing external ocular disease are protozoan parasites, such as Leishmania; metazoans, such as nematodes (roundworms), cestodes (tapeworms), and trematodes (flatworms); or ectoparasites, such as Phthirus pubis and Demodex.