Geometric Properties of Donor Corneas After Mechanical Trephination in Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty

Purpose: To evaluate the geometry of donor corneal buttons after mechanical trephination and to determine whether there were any possible variables that could influence the accuracy of cutting corneal buttons in deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 85 sclerocorneal buttons that were transplanted during deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty. Donor corneas were punched from the posterior surface. Photographs that most clearly represented the entire edges of the donor corneas were taken from the punched corneas and systematically analyzed using ImageJ software. The univariate analyses were used to investigate the influence of potential variables on the precision and roundness of the donor cut. Results: The epithelial side of the grafts was significantly larger than the posterior side in diameter, perimeter, and area. The perimeter and area of the donor posterior surface and the trephine used for punching the grafts were the same, whereas the epithelial side had a significantly larger perimeter and area than those of the trephine. Graft roundness varied from 0.78 to 1.0 at the epithelial side and from 0.77 to 1.0 at the posterior side. The roundness of the scleral spur, which represented the shape of the donor cornea, was identified as the main predictor of the roundness of the donor cut (P
Source: Cornea - Category: Opthalmology Tags: Clinical Science Source Type: research