Eye transplantation
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Eye transplantation | |
|---|---|
| Specialty | Ophthalmology, neurosurgery |
| Complications | Transplant rejection |
Eye transplantation is the transplantation of the globe of the human eye from a donor to a recipient.
Research efforts in whole eye transplantation (WET) are focused on its application in living human recipients, still some obstacles need to be addressed. Apart from the surgical and neurological considerations, there are key ethical concerns such as patients' perceptions and desires for both nonvision-restoring WET and vision-restoring WET, risks and benefits compared to prosthetic alternatives, psychosocial considerations for potential recipients regarding personal identity related to the donor's eyes, public perceptions of whole-eye donation, implications for corneal transplantation eligibility of the donor's eyes, consent for whole-eye donation, and establishment of ethical mechanisms for allocation and distribution of WET. With limited studies available on this topic since the first vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA)[1][2][3] took place in 1998, the understanding of WET is informed by a few studies with limitations. For example, amphibian regeneration cannot directly apply to humans. Ocular transplants may offer a viable option for restoring form in patients undergoing facial transplantation with enucleated orbits.[4]