title: The suitability of corneas stored by organ culture for penetrating keratoplasty and influence of donor and recipient factors on 5-year graft survival.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the impact of donor factors on the suitability of corneas stored by organ culture for penetrating keratoplasty (PK) and the influence of donor and recipient factors on 5-year survival of first PK.
  
  
  METHODS
  Logistic regression analyses were carried out to determine the influence of donor factors on, respectively, the risk of microbial contamination during organ culture, the suitability of corneas for PK (endothelial cell density ≥ 2200 cells/mm(2)), and the quality of corneas (endothelial cell density ≥ 2500 cells/mm(2)). Only one cornea, randomly selected, from each donor was included in these analyses. A Cox regression analysis was used to determine the influence of donor and recipient factors on 5-year PK survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Risk of contamination (n = 8317): Causes of donor death including infection, respiratory disease, and cancer all increased the risk of contamination during organ culture (P < 0.0001). Suitability for PK and endothelial quality (n = 7107): Donor age (P < 0.0001) and storage time in organ culture (P < 0.0001) were the principal factors affecting suitability and quality. Death to enucleation and enucleation to processing times had little influence. Corneas from organ donors were more likely to be suitable for PK (P = 0.0003). Five-year graft survival (n = 3014): Graft survival was dominated by the indication for PK (P < 0.0001). Allograft rejection was also a major risk factor for failure (P < 0.0001). The only donor factor affecting survival was sex (P = 0.008).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Donor age and storage time but not postmortem times influenced the suitability of corneas for PK. The indication for PK and other recipient factors were the main predictors of graft failure.
authors: Corneal Transplant Service Bristol Eye Bank, Bristol, United Kingdom.
authors: W John
authors: WJ
authors: Armitage
authors: Mark N A
authors: MN
authors: Jones
authors: Isaac
authors: I
authors: Zambrano
authors: Fiona
authors: F
authors: Carley
authors: Derek M
authors: DM
authors: Tole
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002423:Cause of Death; D002452:Cell Count; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003315:Cornea; D004728:Endothelium, Corneal / Q000166:cytology; D005125:Eye Banks; D015353:Eye Enucleation; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D015948:Keratoplasty, Penetrating; D008875:Middle Aged; D009924:Organ Culture Techniques; D009926:Organ Preservation; D013997:Time Factors; D014019:Tissue Donors; D014180:Transplantation; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: corneal organ culture; corneal storage; corneal transplantation