Expertise & Experience

Key Statistics

The SNEC Cornea Transplant Programme began in 1991, and SEB was set up in 1993. 70% of corneal transplants in Singapore are performed at SNEC.

• The department has a cornea transplant survival rate of more than 90% in the first year for optical transplants, comparable to the top transplant centres in the world.
• SNEC is the regional referral centre for complex corneal procedures. Descemet-stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) surgeries account for more than 50% of the corneal transplants performed here, and lamellar keratoplasty accounts for 75% to 80% of all transplants.
• The department is an international teaching centre for complex corneal transplants and other complex surgeries (e.g. OOKP).

Legend:

PK: Penetrating Kaeratoplasty

DALK: Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty

DSAEK: Descemet’s Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty

DMEK: Descemet’s Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty

¹Australian Cornea Graft Registry 2024 Report

Key Milestones, Research & Innovation

Among the first centres in the world to introduce Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty (DMEK), a minimally invasive corneal transplant technique that offers a safer, simpler procedure. With corneas supplied by the SEB, surgery takes about 30 minutes and restores vision within weeks. The first-year transplant survival rate is close to 95% comparable to that of the top transplant centres in the world.

Use femtosecond lasers for corneal transplant procedures, enabling clean and accurate cuts with minimal tissue damage which allows faster healing outcomes.

• Started in 1991, the Corneal Transplant Registry now holds data from over 8,000 patients, making it one of Asia’s largest. It supports quality audits, research, and evidence-based care by capturing data before, during, and after surgery

• Osteo-Odonto-Keratoprosthesis (Tan et al., 2008) This landmark “tooth-in-eye” surgery, first performed in Singapore in 2004, is a complex procedure for those who have lost their vision due to corneal or ocular surface disorders and who are not suitable for conventional corneal or stem cell transplant treatment regimens. SNEC has successfully restored the vision of more than 50 patients, nationally and internationally, using this procedure.

• The EndoGlide for EK surgery - A surgical device, the EndoGlide, was invented in 2009 by Professor Donald Tan and Associate Professor Mehta for DSAEK. This device enables endothelial keratoplasty through a small incision in the patients’ eye, with ease and minimal tissue trauma. It was first used as part of the SNEC DSAEK EndoGlide Clinical Trial, and about 600 eyes have undergone DSAEK surgery using the EndoGlide in SNEC.  This device has been shown in the published literature to have a low rate of endothelial cell loss and a reduced risk of complications).  Over 20,000 corneal transplants worldwide have been performed to-date with this device. SNEC and the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI) have also patented a new surgical device, similar to the EndoGlide, for use in Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK).

• ALK techniques for corneal transplant- The Advanced Lamellar Keratoplasty/DSAEK training course was initiated in 2006 and is directed by Professor Tan and Associate Professor Mehta.  Annually, 14 to 16 surgeons from within and outside the Asia-Pacific region are trained in an intensive 3-day course, with hands-on wetlab experience and a live demonstration of the latest lamellar surgery techniques. Our faculty also conducts condensed versions of this advanced lamellar course internationally, in countries such as the United States, Europe, Korea, India and China.