| abstract |
A corneal implant for replacing injured or opaque portions of a natural cornea. The implant comprises a substantially circular main body portion having anterior and posterior surfaces and a radially outwardly facing, substantially cylindrical peripheral surface. Means are provided on the main body portion for receiving sutures therethrough to securely couple the main body portion to the cornea. The peripheral surface has a height H greater than the thickness T of the corneal aperture so that when the corneal implant is sutured into place in a surgically created corneal aperture, the peripheral surface will extend posterior of the cornea to prevent the corneal membrane from growing over the posterior surface of the implant. The corneal implant can be easily attached by simple surgical techniques. First, the opaque or injured portions of the cornea are excised to provide a substantially circular corneal aperture. The corneal implant is then positioned with the periheral surface engaging the edge forming the corneal aperture and sutured into place. |