Corneal transplant epidemiology in a reference center in Bogotá, Colombia (2010-2017)

Abstract

Purpose: To describe the characteristics of the donor and recipient, indications, surgical techniques, and survival results obtained from patients with corneal transplants performed at Fundacion Oftalmologica Nacional (FUNDONAL) between 2010 and 2017. Methods: Descriptive, observational study. Medical records of patients who underwent corneal transplantation were reviewed. Demographic data, surgery indication, transplantation technique, graft transparency, and presence of rejection are evaluated. Statistical analysis was performed with the SPSS software version 21.0. Results: Seven hundred and twelve eyes from 690 patients who underwent corneal transplantation were analyzed. The median age of the recipient was 42 years (interquartile range 21.8 years) and 392 participants (56.8%) were men. Corneal ectasias was the first indication for transplantation. The technique performed most often was penetrating keratoplasty (PK) (89.6%), followed by deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (5.3%), endothelial keratoplasty (3.5%), and sclerokeratoplasty (1.5%). 22.25% of the cases presented at least one rejection episode. Transparency of the graft is >80% up to 36 months from follow-up. Conclusions: In 712 eyes that underwent corneal transplantation between 2010 and 2017, the most frequent indications were corneal ectasias, pseudophakic/aphakic bullous keratopathy, and previous graft failure. Although the most common technique is PK, there is a tendency to perform more lamellar transplants over the years. Survival up to the last control was 78% with graft rejection at 22.23%, which are comparable with results reported in the scientific literature. This study constitutes the first corneal transplant registry in Colombia, with survival results and description of variables that will allow for the identification of risk factors for undesirable outcomes.