BENEFITS OF SPECULAR MICROSCOPY IN EVALUATING EYE DONORS AGED 66 AND OLDER

In the United States of America and worldwide, supplies of quality don or corneas continue to lag behind the demand. Some of what appears to be a shortage in the U.S.A. is really due to the custom of many surgeo ns to use only tissue from younger donors, thus creating an unnecessar y waiting list. In reality, we do have a sizable pool of good donors i n the older age group. With improved evaluation techniques, it is poss ible to identify these donors and to add their tissue to the supply of available corneas. This study shows that large numbers of corneas fro m donors over the age of 65 can be used successfully to restore vision . Specular microscopy provides valuable quantitative data to the surge on, who ultimately makes the decision about the suitability of the don or tissue. For an eye bank, specular microscopy makes it easier to pla ce older tissue, resulting in shorter waiting lists.