It is not necessary for the donor to match the tissue type of the recipient as in other transplants. The donor cornea should be free of disease. Matching the ages of donor and recipient may help to prevent rejection. Most cornea transplants are performed in order to relieve loss of vision which is the result of damage to the cornea. Some transplants are performed in order to provide relief from pain.
Many doctors are unwilling to operate on blind eyes because of the lack of visual benefits.
Relief of pain in a blind eye may be reason enough for some people to opt for a transplantat if they desire to keep the eye relatively healthy. Some doctors are also hesitant to operate on the eyes of people with very low vision, feeling that the risk of damage to the eye from complications is greater than the chance for significant measurable benefits. Cornea damage can significantly affect people with low vision, whose visual functioning is dependent on receiving the maximum amount of light possible in order to make sense of an already distorted image. Furthermore, changes in visual functioning may be significant to the person with low vision without being measurable in the ophthalmologist's office. If you have low vision and are considering a transplant, talking with your doctor about your individual situation is crucial.