Posters

Corneal graft complications in patients with autoimmune diseases

Poster Details

First Author: N.Al Baroudi MOROCCO

Co Author(s):    M. Belmekki                    

Abstract Details

Purpose:

To highlight the postoperative complications following keratoplasty in patients with autoimmune diseases.

Setting:

Cheikh Zaid-International university hospital, Department of ophthalmology, Rabat, Morocco.

Methods:

This retrospective study included four patients with autoimmune diseases who developed postoperative complications following corneal graft, between February 2017 and February 2020. Initial indications were perforation or corneal melting. All patients had a follow-up every three months except emergencies. They underwent a complete ophthalmic examination, which included visual acuity testing, slit lamp examination with Fluorescein staining of the cornea, and optical coherence tomography. The corneal complications were managed according to patients’ conditions.

Results:

Postoperative complications occurred within a mean period of observation of 6 months. Two patients had recurrent keratolysis, one patient had descemetocele and one patient graft perforation. The mean visual acuity (LogMAR) after postoperative complications was 2.3 ± 0.2. Patients were managed as following: one patient had autologous serum eye drops, one patient had amniotic membrane and two patients underwent a second corneal graft. In the first 3 months, the postoperative complications were punctate keratopathy in one patient with dry eye disease and recurrence of sterile corneal melting in one case of rheumatoid arthritis. The postoperative course was uneventful in 50% of cases.

Conclusions:

The recurrence of keratolysis following corneal graft in patients with a clinical history of autoimmune diseases, calls for careful follow-up. In fact, theses complications can be challenging and are a turning point of the visual prognosis requiring an adequate and early treatment.

Financial Disclosure:

None