[Comparative value of 2 technics of corneal preservation for rabbit corneal grafts]

The author compares corneal cryo-preservation in liquid nitrogen with corneal preservation using McCarey-Kaufman solution. Corneal grafts were performed on 38 rabbits which were then studied histologically at different intervals after surgery. The clinical results were similar: 45.5% clear grafts 1-2 months after surgery in the first group (cryo-preservation) and 50% clear grafts 1-3 months after surgery in the second group (preservation with the McCarey-Kaufman solution). The histological results indicated that in both groups, enough donor endothelial cells survive to keep the corneal graft clear; however there were many important endothelial changes in the first group and only a few in the second group.