Abstract
*Correspondence, Shakeel Ahmad: drshakeel333@gmail.com
Purpose To evaluate the feasibility of residual corneoscleral buttons after primary surgery for practising the donor tissue preparation for Descemet’s membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) by trainees and fellows.
Methods Fellows with zero experience in DMEK used 5 residual corneoscleral buttons after DSAEK surgery (central 8 mm graft was punched during the primary surgery), to practice donor Descemet’s membrane peeling. A 9.5 mm donor punch was used for partial cutting of the residual button after staining it with brilliant blue G for 1 minute. 360° stripping of Descemet’s was practised under a balanced salt solution.
Result Fellow successfully peeled 360° Descemet’s membrane in 3 out of 5 residual corneoscleral buttons.
Conclusion Residual corneoscleral button is an excellent source to practice donor Descemet’s membrane peeling for DMEK. This technique can provide cost-effective and easily available platform to the trainees and fellows for gaining skills and practising graft preparation without the fear of financial loss or surgery deferment in case of tissue loss or damage.
