RIYADH, 1 January — Intensified efforts to promote eye donations have resulted in a record number of transplants of corneal and ocular tissues in the Kingdom this year. The campaign was launched by the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation (SCOT) and King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital in Riyadh.
The move to collect and transplant corneal and ocular tissues will significantly help to prevent blindness and correct various eye ailments, said a booklet released by the KKESH. According to an estimate, 10 percent of the visually-handicapped people of Saudi Arabia could regain their eyesight through cornea transplantation.
At the KKESH alone, corneal transplants help approximately 350 patients every year. The donation campaign is significant considering the high incidence of corneal diseases which result in vision problems. Some 45 million people around the world are visually handicapped.
The KKESH has established an eye bank, which has started supplying ocular tissues to other Saudi hospitals and health institutions. The SCOT campaign included awareness programs on the benefits of donating corneas. The organ can be retrieved up to 12 hours after heart arrest.
The KKESH Eye Bank is the first such institution to come into existence in the Kingdom. The Eye Bank in cooperation with the SCOT has been holding an annual course for donor corneal retrieval where technicians working for the Ministry of Health receive training for collecting corneas and other ocular tissues from deceased donors.
