Eye Banking, Corneal Preservation and Transplantation

Restoring corneal clarity depends on a chain of excellence that starts long before the operating room. This session unites eye bank operations, donor screening, preservation science, tissue preparation, surgical selection, and long-term outcome tracking into one practical roadmap. We explain how to standardize referral and recovery, grade tissues objectively, and choose storage media and temperatures that protect endothelium, stromal architecture, and epithelium for the intended procedure. Teams will learn when to request pre-cut DSAEK or DMEK tissue, how to evaluate scroll characteristics, and how delivery systems and insertion techniques interact with cell loss and early detachment risk. We emphasize quality systems—traceability, sterility assurance, and data capture—so programs can demonstrate safety and performance across diverse settings. For surgeons, we outline case selection between PK, DSAEK, and DMEK; strategies for complex eyes; and perioperative pathways that minimize edema, rejection, and refractive surprises. For eye banks, we detail accreditation standards, validation studies, and logistics that keep tissue viable across distances and climates. If you are scouting the right Eye Banking, Corneal Preservation & Transplantation track to present operational metrics or clinical outcomes, this page clarifies evidence that matters: endothelial cell density, primary graft failure, rebubbling rates, and functional vision beyond acuity. For colleagues comparing meetings, this is the definitive Ophthalmology Conference starting point focused on implementable science. Finally, for newcomers and trainees, we recommend beginning with corneal preservation principles—oxygenation, pH, osmolarity, and antioxidant control—before advancing to graft handling, insertion physics, and postoperative immunomodulation. The throughline is simple: the better the tissue journey, the better the patient journey.