Efficacy and limitations of amniotic membrane transplantation in cases of severe ocular surface disorders: retrospective analysis over a 21-year period.

PURPOSE: To examine the reoperation rate of amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT) and clarify the risk factors for AMT reoperation in severe ocular surface (OS) disorders (OSD).

STUDY

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

PARTICIPANTS

We reviewed the medical records of all AMT cases between April 1998 and June 2019 at the Department of Ophthalmology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.

METHODS

Primary diseases and AMT reoperation rates were examined. In severe OSD cases (Stevens-Johnson syndrome, ocular cicatricial pemphigoid, and chemical/thermal burns), preoperative OS Grading Score (OSGS), surgical procedures combined with AMT, and risk factors for reoperation were investigated and assessed.

RESULTS

Over a period of 21 years and 3 months, 750 AMTs were performed on 664 eyes of 594 cases. AMT was repeated on 51 of those 664 eyes (7.7%), and most frequently performed on 25 out of 196 eyes (12.8%) afflicted with severe OSDs. In severe OSDs, OSGS was significantly higher in the reoperation group compared to no-reoperation group (P<0.05), suggesting corneal epithelial defects, conjunctival hyperemia, trichiasis, mucocutaneous junction involvement, and corneal opacity as being risk factors for re-AMT (univariate analysis). In logistic regression analysis, only conjunctival hyperemia was a risk factor, with odds ratios (OR) of 2.65 (95%CI: 1.34-5.22, P=0.005). AMT combined with cultivated or donor corneal epithelial transplantation reduced reoperation risk with an OR of 0.92 and 0.63, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

In severe OSD cases, the effect of AMT is limited. Higher OSGSs, especially in conjunctival hyperemia, are associated with a high risk of repeat AMT.