VisionGraft Sterile Cornea allograft now available at Tissue Banks International

Tissue Banks InternationalOct 22 2009

Patented Process for Corneal Processing Promotes Patient Safety, Offers Benefits for Surgeons in Multiple Applications

Tissue Banks International (TBI) has announced the availability of the VisionGraft Sterile Cornea, the nation's first sterile cornea allograft. The VisionGraft Sterile Cornea (patent pending) is an irradiated cornea for use in tectonic transplant procedures.

The VisionGraft Sterile Cornea offers additional patient safety and dramatic reduction in the risk for disease transmission. It is also ready to use at room temperature and shelf-stable for at least one year, making it ideal to have in stock for use in trauma/emergency procedures as well as for scheduled surgeries.

"The feedback from surgeons who have used the Sterile Cornea has been extremely positive," said David Pennington, TBI Vice President for Ocular Operations. "We've found they really value the additional safety, and patient outcomes including re-epithelialization have been noteworthy."

TBI expects that surgeons from many ophthalmic specialties will find applications for the new allograft. The VisionGraft Sterile Cornea has already been used in glaucoma tube shunt coverage, as a patch graft, and with keratoprosthesis.

"Each application really maximizes a different aspect of the VisionGraft Sterile Cornea," said Pennington. "For glaucoma shunt surgery, the clarity of the tissue is a key advantage over other tissue allografts. But for emergency procedures like a cornea perforation, what really helps is the shelf-stability, because the doctor can have it ready as an inventory item, available whenever they need it."

There is exciting potential for use in Anterior Lamellar and Deep Anterior Lamellar procedures. Early surgical outcomes for these procedures have been promising and further evaluations are underway. The VisionGraft Sterile Cornea is not intended for use in penetrating keratoplasty or endothelial replacement transplants.

The VisionGraft Sterile Cornea is available whole, or pre-cut for specific applications according to surgeon specifications. The allografts are prepared at The National Eye Bank Center (NEBC) in Memphis, Tennessee, TBI's state-of-the-art, centralized eye banking facility, taking advantage of The Center's skilled pre-cut technicians and high volume of available corneal tissue.

"All of the benefits of the VisionGraft Sterile Cornea come in addition to added patient safety," said TBI President and CEO Gerald Cole. "That is what TBI was really after when we developed this new allograft, and we are proud to once again be leading the way in innovation in this area."