The eye is an amazing structure made up of many parts, each of which are important to your vision. One of those parts is the cornea. The cornea helps to focus light and offers protection for the internal structures of the eye. In order for you cornea to focus light on to your retina correctly, it must be properly shaped and transparent. If the cornea becomes hazy or irregularly shaped then your vision becomes impaired.
Age, illness, and trauma to the eye are some of the causes of corneal issues that can affect your daily functioning. If your doctor determines that your vision impairment is due to a cornea problem, you may be a candidate for a total or partial cornea transplant.
The doctors at Eye Group of Mississippi are offering a cutting-edge technique known as DSAEK and DMEK to our patients with specific corneal transplant needs. DSAEK, short for Descemet’s Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty, allows surgeons to target the specific cause of vision loss—cloudy cornea. Descemets Membrane Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty (DMEK) is the newest corneal transplant. Similar to DSAEK, only the damaged cell layer is replaced; however, with DMEK, the donor tissue used is only one cell layer in thickness. The thinner donor tissue is to provide even better vision post-operatively. Dr. Moore is the only surgeon in Mississippi to be fellowship trained in this procedure
Damage to the inside layer of the cornea can allow water to build up inside the cornea causing cloudiness and ultimately vision loss. During the DSAEK and DMEK procedures the damaged layer is stripped away and replaced with a thin portion of a donor cornea. This allows a very precise repair, removing only the damaged portion of the cornea, which can lead to better overall results.
William C. Ashford, M.D. (Emeritus) and Lee Moore, M.D. are two of the few Ophthalmologists in the area performing Corneal Transplants. The corneal transplant surgery is performed in our own single specialty surgery center located in the suite next door to our clinic.
