The Tampa Trephine Technique with Cat Corneal Endothelium

The Tampa Trephine (Martin Marietta Speciality Components, Largo, FL, U.S.A.) penetrating keratoplasty technique uses a 7.0-mm corneal donor button with six rectangular 1 x2-mm tabs of Bowmanʼs layer, 75 μm in thickness, which are inserted into the recipient stroma beneath Bowmanʼs layer. We evaluated the safety of the Tampa Trephine tissue-trephination method on the cat corneal endothelium combining vital staining and scanning electron microscopy, comparing it with the standard Week trephination technique. The Tampa Trephine tissue trephination produces a donor button with a 6.7-mm diameter central area of normal endothelium. Localized peripheral areas of cellular loss, endothelial and Descemetʼs tears, endothelial detachment, and folding along the border of the trephination were observed with the Tampa Trephine method, all located in an area of ≤150 μm, adjacent to the edge of the button. Standard trephination induced a localized peripheral area of endothelial damage