Clinical Outcomes

Our medical team works closely with NIIOS R&D and Amnitrans EyeBank Rotterdam to develop, research and refine techniques for treating corneal disease. You can find our clinical results in international medical journals, and we present them at ophthalmology conferences around the world.

Below, we present a few clinical outcomes for DMEK (Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty) to treat disorders including Fuchs endothelial dystrophy and bullous keratopathy, and for Bowman layer transplantation to treat keratoconus.

Faster Visual Recovery

Patients’ vision recovers faster after DMEK than after DSEK (Descemet stripping endothelial keratoplasty) or after a penetrating keratoplasty (PKP):

Within one month after the DMEK procedure, 87% of patients have visual acuity of 50% or greater, 49% have visual acuity of 80% or more, and 20% have visual acuity of 100% or even better.
After six months, 75% of patients have visual acuity of 80% or more, and 41% have visual acuity of 100% or more.
Studies on penetrating keratoplasty reveal that it takes 12 months before roughly 50% of patients have visual acuity of 50% or more.

Lower Risk of Graft Detachment or Graft Rejection

In addition to faster recovery of vision, DMEK also has a lower risk of donor tissue detachment or rejection compared to DSEK and PKP:

In 6.8% of patients, the donor tissue initially does not sufficiently adhere after DMEK. Waiting often brings improvement. 5% of these patients needs additional treatment. By surgically inserting an air bubble behind the donor tissue, the graft will go on to properly adhere.
1 to 2% of DMEK patients experience graft rejection after surgery. That number is 10–15% for PKP and 5–10% for DSEK—a significant difference. Symptoms of rejection are easily treated using eye drops. Sometimes re-transplantation is required.

In contrast with DSEK and PKP, almost no long-term complications arise after a DMEK procedure, such as permanently lower visual acuity or long-term problems related to glaucoma.

Results for Bowman Layer Transplantation to Treat Keratoconus

In general, the keratoconus stabilizes after Bowman layer transplantation and no further disease progression takes place.