A unique eye surgery at UMC Utrecht
Moving a nerve from your arm to your eye to bring back feeling in the cornea. This special operation was done for the first time in the Netherlands this week, by doctors at UMC Utrecht. Eye patients who have lost feeling in the cornea can really benefit from this procedure.
鈥淭he surgery went well from a technical point of view,鈥 says , professor of ophthalmology at UMC Utrecht. He performed the operation together with plastic surgery professor . Because the nerve is taken from a small area in the arm, the surgery is minimally invasive, meaning it puts less strain on the patient. 鈥淟osing feeling in the cornea is rare, but it causes a lot of problems,鈥 says Dickman.
About the Surgery
What is it called? Cornea neurotization.
What is it? A procedure where a nerve from the arm is moved to the cornea.
Who is it for? People who have lost sensation in their cornea (eye).
Why do it? When the cornea can feel again, the eye can better protect and heal itself.
What is the benefit? The feeling in the eye can return, and vision may improve.
Is it heavy surgery? No, it is minimally invasive, so it is less stressful for the patient.
First time? Yes, this is the first time the surgery has been done in the Netherlands.
Regenerative cornea transplants
Last year, UMC Utrecht also performed the first transplant on a patient with a complex eye condition. Because there is a shortage of donors, artificial corneas are an interesting option. That transplant was a step toward regenerative corneal implants using lab-grown cells.
鈥淲ith my research, I focus on regenerating the cornea. With a nerve transplant, we can bring back feeling in the cornea. This week鈥檚 operation is the first time we鈥檝e succeeded in doing that,鈥 says Mor Dickman.
Healing the cornea鈥檚 nerve
Cornea neurotization is a good example of teamwork between eye doctors and plastic surgeons in Utrecht. Still, the final results will take time. Mor: 鈥淚t will take a year before we know if the operation really worked. The nerves in the cornea need to grow back together. We will follow this process closely. Then we鈥檒l know if this surgery can help more patients in the future.鈥
Preventing unnecessary damage
Many (eye) doctors don鈥檛 know that the corneal nerve can be repaired. Because of this, patients sometimes suffer damage that could have been avoided. Mor Dickman explains: 鈥淪ome people have cornea damage from radiation, infections, or injuries, and they just live with it, even though it might be treatable. That鈥檚 why outreach is so important. These patients are often not even on the radar anymore. And this condition can affect young children too.鈥
Did You Know?
Every year, around 2,000 cornea transplants take place in the Netherlands, making it the most common type of transplant. Most patients are older, but sometimes younger people and children also need a cornea transplant.