Cornea Transplant: Surgery, Recovery, Success Rate, and More
Cornea Transplant
In this article
- Role of a Healthy Cornea
- Types of Cornea Transplants
- How Full Thickness Cornea Transplants Are Performed
- Success Rates of Cornea Transplants
- Recovery From a Cornea Transplant
Recovery From a Cornea Transplant continued...
The cornea tends to heal slowly. To help protect your eye in the days after the surgery, your doctor may ask you to wear a protective shield over it.
You will need to use eyedrops for several months after the transplant which canthen be reduced to one drop a day or discontinued. The stitches may remain in your eye for months or years. Your eye doctor can remove them in a simple procedure during an office visit.
Your vision may improve slowly after the surgery. It's important to avoid any possible trauma to your eye, such as from sports. This can damage your new cornea. You should report new irritation or any decrease in vision to your corneal surgeon. These may be signs that your body is rejecting the donor cornea. Most transplant rejections are fully reversible with steroid eyedrops if detected early enough.
Rejection may even occur years after the surgery. If you notice any of these signs that last for more than six hours, call your eye doctor promptly. The doctor can give you medicine that can help prevent as well as treat rejection.