Comparison of donor corneas obtained from hospital cornea retrieval program and voluntary eye donation in South India - A prospective study

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the donor characteristics, quality of tissues, and utilization rate of corneas collected through Hospital cornea retrieval program (HCRP) and voluntary eye donation (VED). Methods: A prospective nonrandomized comparative study of all consecutive donor corneas collected through HCRP and VED during December 2015 to November 2016 was performed. Details of the donor such as age, sex, cause of death, need for medicolegal clearance, death to enucleation time, slit-lamp grading, specular microscopy, and tissue utilization were documented. Results: Nine hundred and eighty-five eyes of 493 donors were included in the study, of which 606 (61.5%) eyes belonged to HCRP and 379 (38.5%) eyes in VED. HCRP donors were significantly younger (HCRP: 43.87 ± 19 years; VED: 72.8 ± 13 years; P < 0.001). Males were more common in HCRP (HCRP: 236, 77.6%; VED: 99, 52.2%; P < 0.001). The most common cause of death was road traffic accident (132, 43.6%) in HCRP and cardiovascular disease (93, 49%) in VED. 73.3% (222) of HCRP donors needed medicolegal clearance. Phakic donor eyes were significantly higher in HCRP (HCRP: 561, 92.6%; VED: 184, 48.6%; P < 0.001). Specular microscopy was possible in 396 (65.3%) eyes of HCRP and 129 (34%) eyes of VED. The mean endothelial cell density was 2931 ± 431.1 in HCRP and 2668.6 ± 381.1 in VED. The tissue utilization rate was significantly higher in HCRP (HCRP: 481, 79.4%; VED: 201, 53%; P < 0.001). Eighty-two percent of endothelial keratoplasty, 78.5% of optical penetrating keratoplasty, and 58% of therapeutic keratoplasty were from HCRP donors. Conclusion: Donor corneas collected through HCRP have higher tissue utilization