Quality of life after cultured corneal endothelial cell transplant in patients with bullous keratopathy.

PURPOSE: Using the National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire-25 (NEI VFQ-25), to evaluate vision-related quality of life outcomes in patients with bullous keratopathy after cultured corneal endothelial cell (CEC) transplant.

STUDY

DESIGN

Single-center prospective clinical trial

METHODS

In this prospective, single-center study, 11 consecutive patients with bullous keratopathy underwent cultured CEC transplant. The NEI VFQ-25 was administered through in-person interviews by trained interviewers at baseline and at 24 weeks postoperatively. The NEI VFQ-25 comprises 12 subscales that assess different aspects of vision-related quality of life. Changes in composite and subscale scores were analyzed.

RESULTS

The patients comprised 5 men and 6 women, with a mean age of 64.4 years (range 49-82 years). All the patients had pseudophakic bullous keratopathy, with Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy being the predominant underlying cause of disease (7 eyes). The NEI VFQ-25 composite score improved significantly from 61.8 ± 11.9 to 79.5 ± 8.0 (P <.01). Significant improvements were observed in general vision, ocular pain, near vision, social function, mental health, role limitations, dependency, and peripheral vision subscales (P <.05). General health, distance vision, driving, and color vision subscales showed minimal improvement.

CONCLUSIONS

Cultured CEC transplant significantly improved vision-related quality of life in patients with bullous keratopathy. The comprehensive improvement across multiple NEI VFQ-25 domains suggests that this novel therapeutic approach may be a viable treatment option for corneal endothelial dysfunction.