Full-thickness conjunctival flap covering surgery combined with amniotic membrane transplantation for severe fungal keratitis

Fungal keratitis is a severe and common ocular infectious disease. The present study evaluated the efficiency of full-thickness conjunctival flap covering surgery with amniotic membrane transplantation (FCCS + AMT) as a transitional surgery for severe fungal keratitis. A total of 17 patients with severe fungal keratitis without corneal perforation underwent FCCS + AMT between January 2010 and December 2015. The pathogenic factors, preoperative diagnosis and postoperative prognosis of FCCS + AMT at 3 months were evaluated. Subsequently, 7 patients received sclerokeratoplasty, and the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and recurrence ratio were analyzed at 1 month postoperatively. The primary risk factor was agricultural trauma (7 cases), followed by a non-agricultural object entering the eye (3 cases). Preoperatively, there were 10 cases of fungal keratitis positively identified using confocal microscopy and 9 cases positively identified by corneal scrapings. A total of 3 months following FCCS + AMT, the percentage of cases resulting in preservation of the eyeball was 88.24%, with 15/17 patients demonstrating complete conjunctival re-epithelization and a smooth conjunctival surface without any complications. A total of 2 (11.76%) patients experienced melting of the conjunctival flap and development of endophthalmitis, and subsequently underwent ocular evisceration surgery. A total of 7 patients underwent sclerokeratoplasty and the mean logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution BCVA at 1 month was significantly improved (0.689±0.121; P<0.001) compared with preoperative values (2.459±0.037) and BCVA values following FCCS + AMT (2.529±0.066). No recurrence was observed in any of the cases during the follow-up period. Conclusively, FCCS + AMT may be a preferable treatment for severe fungal keratitis of the entire corneal ulcer without perforation, and may save the eyeball and provide a greater opportunity for corneal transplantation.