Peter Veldman, MD, of Mass. Eye and Ear was first author on two recent publications related to the S-stamp for Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK), a novel orientation technique that has to date eliminated upside-down graft implantation in DMEK. Dr. Veldman helped to validate and then successfully implement this technique over the last couple of years. During that time, he has presented preliminary data on the topic at many national meetings. In the September 2015 issue of Cornea, Dr. Veldman detailed a validation study including six cadaveric human corneas demonstrating minimal endothelial cell loss resulting from the application of the S-stamp using this novel technique. Additionally, he provided a detailed step-by-step description of this validated stamping technique so that it can be successfully and safely incorporated in other eye banks around the world. The clinical utility of the S-stamp was then demonstrated in a second article published in Ophthalmology (October 2015), in which Dr. Veldman and colleagues presented 6-month clinical outcomes from a series of 165 consecutive DMEK procedures before and after the introduction of the stromal-sided S-stamp. Not only did the S-stamp not adversely affect early postoperative complications or 6-month endothelial cell loss, it notably eliminated graft failure due to upside-down implantation, the most common cause of graft failure in DMEK. As a result of these publications and data previously presented by Dr. Veldman at national meetings, the S-stamp has undergone widespread adoption by corneal surgeons and has improved the safety profile for DMEK.
