The Boston KPro: Revolutionized the Field of Corneal Transplantation

Dear Colleagues,

Nearly five million people in the world are blind from corneal disease in both eyes, and millions more have corneal blindness in one eye. For some people, conventional corneal transplantation is a successful and life-changing intervention. Many others, however, suffer multiple transplant failures or have corneal conditions that make them poor candidates for traditional transplantation.

Conceptualized at Mass. Eye and Ear in the 1960s by Claes H. Dohlman, MD, PhD, the Boston Keratoprosthesis (KPro) has revolutionized the field of corneal transplantation over the last two decades. Since achieving FDA status in 1992, the Boston KPro has undergone continuous design innovations that have significantly improved the safety and long-term success of the implant. Today, the Boston KPro is the most commonly used corneal prosthesis in the world with more than 11,000 implantations to date in 66 countries by 598 surgeons. In 2014, KPro received European Conformity (CE) mark approval, making the device reimbursable across the European market and, thus, accessible to many more people.

This issue of Eye Insights™ offers treatment guidelines and recommendations from our KPro experts for maximizing the safety and effectiveness of the device, particularly for patients who suffer from glaucoma, autoimmune disorders, and post-operative infections. We hope you find this information useful in your clinical practice. For more information on KPro and our team, please visit MassEyeAndEar.org.