[Does vascularization and the graft diameter affect the rejection reaction in corneal transplantation?]

The rejection (RR) is one of the most serious complications of perforating keratoplasty (PK). The authors evaluated in a retrospective investigation 316 PK made between 1986 and 1990 at the Second Ophthalmological Clinic in Prague. The authors investigated the number, onset, type of RR and its relation to the character of vascularization and size of the graft. The total number of RR was 66 (20.9%) with a mean onset period of 6.67 months. A significantly higher incidence (p < 0.01) of RR was found in the group of vascularized corneas (28.0%), as compared with corneas without vascularization (14.71%). The difference between groups with a superficial and deep vascularization was not significant. The authors did not find a significant difference in the incidence of RR in PK with a 7 mm diameter of the explant or smaller, as compared with explants larger than 7 mm.