Active clinical trials for "Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy"

Background Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy Fuchs' Endothelial Dystrophy (Fuchs' ED) is characterized by changes on the inside of the cornea, which leads to a substantial decline in visual acuity. The only effective treatment option for Fuchs' ED is corneal transplantation. Corneal transplantation Corneal transplantation surgery has seen major advances in the last decade, and the Descemet's Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty (DSAEK) procedure has now become the preferred method. Outcome There have been a substantial number of publications on outcome after DSAEK surgery, and the procedure has several advantages over the former preferred method of transplantation, penetrating keratoplasty (PK). Despite the apparent success of the DSAEK procedure, visual acuity is seldom fully restored even in otherwise healthy eyes. Several studies have tried to clarify this matter but so far results have been conflicting. Hypotheses The reduction in visual acuity and contrast sensitivity in patients with Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy is correlated with corneal thickness, corneal light scatter, and the type and magnitude of optical disrupting guttae in Descemet's membrane. The subjective visual function after corneal transplantation with a posterior lamellar graft is correlated with the optical properties of the grafted cornea (thickness, light scatter, irregularities on the anterior, and posterior corneal surfaces) Materials and methods In a controlled prospective trial of DSAEK patients, we aim to register different morphological patterns, monitor visual performance and optical parameters. Three sex and age-matched groups will be compared: Group 1: 40 patients that undergo DSAEK surgery Group 2: 40 patients that undergo combined cataract and DSAEK surgery. Group 3: Control group of 40 patients with normal corneas that undergo cataract surgery.

Prospective, multicenter, randomized, masked, vehicle-controlled, dose-escalation study that includes a non-interventional observational sub-study in which subjects will undergo (standard) ocular assessments

Primary aim of the study is to determine whether a rho kinase inhibitor, Netarsudil, can speed corneal clearance after DWEK. Secondary aim of the study is to investigate whether patient factors, such as baseline age, pachymetry, or endothelial cell count influence response to Netarsudil.

A pilot study designed to assess the feasibility of planned descemetorhexis for the treatment of Fuchs' corneal dystrophy.

Endothelial keratoplasty is a cornea-sparing transplant technique that replaces only the diseased endothelial cell layer of the patient's cornea. This technique offers many advantages compared with traditional full-thickness cornea transplants. Patients experience minimal change in glasses prescription and usually recover useful vision within weeks. Visual fluctuations are minimal during the healing process. The patient's cornea remains structurally intact and is more resistant to injury. Endothelial keratoplasty is undergoing rapid and widespread adoption. Between 2005 and 2007, the number of corneas placed by US eye banks for endothelial keratoplasty increased ten-fold (2007 Eye Bank Association of America Annual Report). However, the procedure is less than 10 years old, and little is known about long term outcomes. Endothelial keratoplasty candidates at our center are invited to participate in an open enrollment, prospective study of the long-term outcomes of this procedure.

The study objective is to determine whether use of Rhopressa improves the ability of corneal endothelial cells to maintain appropriate corneal hydration in patients with Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD), which could help delay or prevent the need for a corneal transplant.

The cornea is a transparent membrane, half a millimeter thick, embedded as a window in front of the eye. When the eye becomes opaque, the eye is not seeing and the only way to restore the visual acuity is to replace the cornea by performing a graft (4000 surgeries per year in France). In half the cases the opacification of the cornea is secondary to dysfunction of the endothelium, cell layer of 15 μm thickness, covering its posterior surface, in charge of regulating the moisture of the corneal thickness and therefore its transparency. While the total corneal transplantation has long been the only intervention for these diseases, it is now possible, from 4-5 years, to replace only the very thin: it is called endothelial transplant or graft lamellar later. This intervention is now experiencing significant success as it reduces very significantly the incidence of complications found after transplantation of total cornea and the visual recovery period. This type of transplant is still difficult to achieve and the best technique is not yet established. Indeed, posterior lamellar transplantation of the cornea may be done manually or using an automated device. Manual techniques allow the preparation of grafts extremely thin but are difficult to achieve while the automatic techniques, easier, prepare thicker grafts that may be less efficient in visual recovery. The aim of this project is to conduct a prospective study in order to compare these two techniques in terms of postoperative visual recovery and the vitality of the graft during the first year. To date, there is no such study. The department of Ophthalmology in the University Hospital of Rouen is one of the most famous French teams in the field of cornea transplants and receives many patients from different French regions. The recruitment of 40 patients needed to study should be done without great difficulty over a period of 18 months.

Descemet's stripping with endothelial keratoplasty (DSEK) is a cornea-sparing transplant technique that replaces only the diseased endothelial cell layer of the patient's cornea. The DSEK technique requires lamellar dissection of the donor tissue prior to implantation in the patient's eye. The surgeon usually dissects the donor cornea with a microkeratome at the time of surgery. Recently some eye banks have begun to pre-cut the donor graft as an added service. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes with eye bank pre-cut and surgeon-dissected donor grafts for DSEK.

To assess and compare the complications and results of different lamellar endothelial keratoplasty techniques and its variations.

PQ-504a-001 (Fuchs Focus) is an open-label, single-dose, exploratory study to evaluate safety, tolerability, and corneal endothelium molecular biomarker(s) in subjects with Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy with Trinucleotide Repeat Expansion in the TCF4 gene (FECD3).