Is an Eye Transplant Possible?
Updated July 31, 2014.
Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Board.
Question: Is an Eye Transplant Possible?
My friend says she is having an eye transplant surgery, I say such a thing isn't possible. Who is right?
Answer:
You may hear the words "eye transplant" used by patients, but a true eye transplant surgery is not possible. Currently, the only eye transplant procedure that is available is the cornea transplant, which replaces a diseased cornea with a cornea donated by a deceased donor.
So your friend probably meant that she would be having a cornea transplant, not an eye transplant.
Scientists don't expect a total eye transplant surgery to become a possibility in the near future. A true transplant of the eye would require severing and reattaching the optic nerve, which is beyond the current capabilities of surgeons.
Sources:
Facts about the Cornea and Cornea Disease. National Eye Institute. January 2011. http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/cornealdisease/#4