Clinical And Functional Outcomes Of New Intrastromal Keratoprosthesis Implantation

To analyze the clinical and functional outcomes of the surgical treatment in patients with corneal vascular leucoma using the new intrastromal keratoprosthesis (Reper-NN).

The study enrolled 98 patients (98 eyes) with burn injuries and terminal dystrophic corneal opacities who underwent the surgical treatment. The average age of the patients was 53.0±17.7 years (from 19 to 86 years), including 71 men and 27 women.

All patients underwent keratoprosthesis implantation of the new Reper-NN intrastromal keratoprosthesis (group 1) or the standard Fyodorov-Zuev keratoprosthesis (group 2).

After 12 months, the BCVA data in the group of patients with the Reper-NN keratoprosthesis were significantly higher than in the group with the Fyodorov-Zuev keratoprosthesis (p<0.05, Mann-Whitney test). Also the BCVA data in both study groups at all follow-up periods were statistically significantly higher than the preoperative data (p<0.001, Wilcoxon test). The total number of complications (in percentage terms) in the Reper-NN keratoprosthesis group was clinically significantly lower than in the group with the standard model. Retroprosthetic membrane formation occurred significantly less frequently in the group of patients with the Reper-NN keratoprosthesis (p<0.05, Fisher's exact test).

The search for an optimal keratoprosthesis design remains a relevant research objective. In the study, both keratoprosthesis models (the Reper-NN model and the standard Fyodorov-Zuev model) demonstrated high efficacy. The new Reper-NN keratoprosthesis provided good clinical and functional outcomes and significantly reduced the risk of potential complications. However, further observations are required to confirm the outcomes and improve the technique.