Eye Donations Still OK After Laser Eye Treatment

You already know that you can elect to donate your organs when you pass away, but did you know that you can also donate your eyes? There are many reasons why you should consider donating your eyes. One is for eye transplants. Laser eye treatment options are sometimes a viable treatment for eye diseases and problems, but sometimes the eye simply needs replaced. More than 90 percent of eye transplants are successful and help the recipient to see well again. In fact, there have been more than 500,000 transplants done since the 1960’s (according to the Eye Bank Association of America).

Electing to donate your eyes does not cost you anything. Make sure that your loved ones know that you want to donate your eyes and leave it in writing. There are also donor cards that you should fill out and carry around with you in your wallet, purse or whatever. You probably have an option on your driver’s license, too. Even if all those measures are taken, it’s important that your family knows about your wishes. Explain to them that donating your eyes will not cause any further painful delay in having your funeral arrangements carried out. At the most, the funeral home may need up to four extra hours. Also, it’s still possible to have an open-casket ceremony if that’s what you want.

Anyone can donate eyes. Regardless of your age, sex or even how well your eyesight is, you can always donate your eyes. Eyes that are donated and aren’t fit to be used for a transplant are still able to be used for other things. They can be used for research on eye diseases, so they’ll still be put to good use. Many people wrongly believe that if you’ve had laser eye treatment that you can’t donate your eyes. But you can.

There was a study done to see how laser eye treatment affected the cornea over time. They took photos of the cell lining before the laser eye treatment and nine years after. They compared the results with other eyes that had never had laser eye treatment, and the annual rate of corneal endothelial cell loss was the same in both cases. The results of this study were published in the Archives of Ophthalmology (November issue). It furthered the proof that eyes that have undergone laser eye treatment are fine for donating.