Matching for Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) in corneal transplantation – To do or not to do

Publication date: Available online 16 January 2015 Source:Progress in Retinal and Eye Research Author(s): T.H. van Essen , D.L. Roelen , K.A. Williams , M.J. Jager The benefit of matching the donor and recipient of corneal allografts for Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) has often been debated. Currently, patients receiving their first corneal allograft are hardly ever matched for HLA antigens and even patients undergoing a regraft usually do not receive an HLA-matched graft. The great success of primary corneal transplantations is based on the ocular immune privilege. Although this indeed seems to render HLA-matching superfluous, in vascularized recipients, immune privilege is more often compromised than not, which leads to an increased risk of graft rejection. This review presents an overview of the background, alternatives, and current opinions on the relevance of HLA matching in corneal transplantation, and shows that current data support the benefit of matching for HLA Class I and II antigens in high risk corneal transplantations.
Source: Progress in Retinal and Eye Research - Category: Opthalmology Source Type: research