Eyeworld

97 EW CORNEA September 2015 Contact information Corrales: gcorrales@novavcs.com By the time he came to Dr. Corrales' practice, the patient's visual acuity was limited to hand motions. At the slit lamp, the eye showed a stromal ring infiltrate, with an overlying epithelial defect that was 1.5 mm in diameter, as well as several satellite infiltrates; this turned out to be a fungal Aspergillus flavus infection. Even before the culture came in, suspicions were that this was a fungal case. "It was treated as fungal, but it was too late," Dr. Corrales said. The ulcer unfortunately perforated, putting the eye in jeopardy. "We needed to do something immediately," he said. "That's when the idea of the VisionGraft came up." Using an 8.75 mm VisionGraft cornea, investigators performed a therapeu- tic penetrating keratoplasty. At the end of the procedure, the patient was given an intracameral injection of voriconazole to eliminate any remaining infection. The temporary graft integrated well. At 6 months, practitioners decided to proceed with a traditional transplant. While the VisionGraft remained clear, the patient had developed a cataract during this period, Dr. Corrales said. A triple procedure removing the cataract, implanting an IOL, and proceeding with a fresh corneal transplant was performed. The fresh transplant in the now quiet eye did well, with no signs of rejection, more than a year after the transplant. "His cornea was clear the last time that I saw him," Dr. Corrales said. The patient ended up with a visual acuity of 20/200 as a result of his diabetic retinopathy. In addition to giving the eye a chance to quiet down, he believes that the sterile cornea may have been helpful in controlling any lingering infection since most organisms probably couldn't survive on the VisionGraft. Dr. Corrales hopes that prac- titioners take away from the case the realization that they do have options with this tissue, which can buy time. Going forward, he thinks more people are going to use the sterile tissue. "It can be kept on the shelf in the operating room, so that if you need it, it's right there in emergency cases," Dr. Corrales said. "I think the research is going to continue. There are a few issues to solve but I think it's an exciting future." EW Editors' note: Dr. Corrales has no finan- cial interests related to this article. N O V E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 1 5 L A S V E G A S , N V UNITING OVER 800 LEADERS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF GROUND-BREAKING OPHTHALMIC TECHNOLOGIES The Ophthalmology Innovation Summit was created to facilitate meaningful interactions and business partnerships between physicians, entrepreneurs, investors and industry executives who are driving ophthalmic innovation. OIS addresses key issues – both hurdles and opportunities while showcasing the most innovative ophthalmic companies. WWW.OIS.NET � 5% 10% 30% 20% 35% Ophthalmologists/KOLs Finance/Investment Professionals Ophthalmic Companies Industr y/Corporate Executives Press/Media 2014 | ATTENDEE DEMOGRAPHICS

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