Clinical Analysis Of Keratoplasty Performed For Complications Of Moderate Or Severe Ocular Chemical Burns

Purpose: To evaluate the clinical effects on three kinds of keratoplasties, as the treatments of complications of moderate or severe ocular chemical burns.Method: 34 eyes of 27 patients (from Feb. 1993 to Feb. 2004) suffered from moderate or severe ocular chemical burns were studied. They were treated with total lamellar keratoplasty (11 eyes), total lamellar cornea with circle lamellar sclera transplantation,CST (4 eyes) and Penetrating Keratoplasty,PKP (20 eyes) respectively. We observed and analyzed the postoperative status of corneal grafts, neovascularizations, rejections and visual acuities, during 6-24 months' followed-up(12.3 months in average).Result: All corneal grafts survived and ocular surface reconstructions were successful and remained stable except one eye was infected after operation. Visions in 25 eyes(73.5%) were improved in different degrees and there were no changes in 9 eyes (26.5%). 9 eyes' corneal grafts were transparent, 24 eyes' semitransparent and 1 eye' opacity. Rejections were happened in 15 eyes (44.1%), secondary glaucomas in 3 eyes (8.8%), neovascularizations in all eyes and infection in one eye.Conclusions: Keratoplasty is an effective procedure for restoring the corneal surface integrity in eyes with moderate or severe ocular chemical burns. Using different kinds of keratoplasties on eyes with different state of illness will increase the successful rate of keratoplasty. The improvement of these eye conditions plays an important role in corneal transplantation. CST is a better method for eyes with pterygium and without corneal perforation than total lamellar keratoplasty while PKP is the best method for eyes with corneal perforation in the three kinds of keratoplasties.