Sanjay V. Patel, M.D.

The objectives of this study are to determine if the 1-year graft success rate following DMEK performed with corneas from donors without diabetes is superior to the graft success rate with cornea donors with diabetes, to determine if the 1-year central endothelial cell loss (ECL) following DMEK performed with corneas from donors without diabetes is superior to the central ECL when corneas from donors with diabetes are used, nd to explore the relationship of severity of diabetes in the donor, as measured by eye bank-determined diabetes risk categorization scores, post-mortem hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and skin advanced glycation endproducts (AGE) and oxidation markers, with 1-year graft outcomes (i.e., graft success and ECL) following DMEK in corneas from donors with diabetes.

The association of diabetes in the cornea donor with transplant success and loss of endothelial cells one year following Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) will be evaluated in a double-masked multi-center trial in which study eyes will be assigned to receive either a cornea from a donor without diabetes or a cornea from a donor with diabetes.

The purpose of this study is to determine visual function in patients with Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy (FECD) to understand when in the course of disease patients are affected by compromised vision.

The purpose of this study is to determine how corneal transparency is affected in Fuchs dystrophy, and if a measure of corneal transparency (haze) can help grade the severity of the disease.

The purpose of this study is to determine changes in corneal thickness and backscatter after first morning eye-opening across a range of fuchs endothelial dystrophy severity, and in healthy corneas. Corneal measurements will be made with a Scheimpflug camera and associated changes in visual acuity and glare (forward scatter) will be determined.

The goal of this study is to determine optical and visual function through 5 years after Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK). The study will also determine graft health (corneal endothelial cell loss) and survival through 5 years after DMEK, and factors associated with these outcomes, as well as assess the relationship between optical and anatomical corneal rehabilitation after DMEK.

The purpose of this study is to establish central and peripheral corneal thickness across a broad age range of subjects with normal corneas.  Determine normal light scattering properties from the cornea.  Establish trends in the curvature of the anterior and posterior surfaces of the cornea with age.

The goal of this study is to understand when in the course of disease vision-related quality of life becomes impaired, and to determine associations between quality of life and visual and optical factors in the disease.

The purpose of this study is to test how valid and reliable the new V-FUCHS questionnaire is across a spectrum of Fuchs dystrophy patients.

The purpose of this study is to compare patient-reported visual disability before and after endothelial keratoplasty in patients with Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy by comparing scores of the previously designed and validated Visual Function and Corneal Health Status (V-FUCHS) questionnaire. Patient-reported disability will be related to the optical properties of the cornea measured by non-contact imaging methods.