Test Before Corneal Transplant May Improve Outcome
WEDNESDAY, July 1 (HealthDay News) -- Among patients with herpes simplex virus who need a corneal transplant, testing for inflammation biomarkers before the surgery could improve outcomes, U.S. researchers say.
The cornea, which covers the front of the eye and helps focus light for vision, can be damaged when herpes simplex virus infects the eye. In some cases, the damage is so great that the cornea needs to be replaced with a transplant, according to background information provided in a news release from the American Academy of Ophthalmology. It was already known that cornea transplants were more likely to fail in patients with herpes simplex virus infection than in those with other eye conditions. This is true even when the virus doesn't appear to be active in patients.
Researchers at the Kellogg Eye Center at the University of Michigan suspected that patients with herpes simplex virus infection might have corneal inflammation that increased the risk of corneal transplant rejection, but couldn't be detected during pre-ransplant clinical examinations.
To test their theory, the researchers analyzed corneal tissue removed from 62 patients.
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