Purpose: To describe a corneal endothelial layer and Descemet membrane transplantation into the anterior chamber for the treatment of bullous keratopathy in 1980.
Methods: A retrospective report of an intervention case study is presented. A patient with aphakic bullous keratopathy in one eye was interested in undergoing a previously untested corneal transplantation procedure. Snellen visual acuity testing and slit-lamp examination were performed. The main outcome measures were visual acuity and degree of corneal clarity.
Results: Visual acuity and corneal clarity improved in the months following the endothelial/Descemet membrane transplant but gradually returned to preoperative levels 1 year later. A subsequent successful penetrating keratoplasty resulted in excellent visual acuity (-20/25).
Conclusions: An attempt to perform endothelial and Descemet membrane transplantation for aphakic corneal edema in 1980 resulted in early improvement in corneal clarity and visual acuity but required full penetrating keratoplasty at 2 years postoperatively. [J Refract Surg. 2010;26(7):525-528.] doi:10.3928/1081597X-20090910-01