Attitude of Ophthalmologists to the Problems of Organizing Corneal Transplantation in Russia

Currently, much attention is paid to the preservation of vision in the Russian Federation. Of particular importance are corneal diseases requiring surgical treatment (keratoplasty). In this regard, the identification of problems in the organization of specialized ophthalmic care for patients in need of keratoplasty is extremely relevant, and their solution will ensure the proper level of quality and accessibility of medical care provided to them. A survey of 840 ophthalmologists from different regions of the Russian Federation was conducted. Problems with obtaining donor material (53,6 per 100 respondents), inaccessibility of keratoplasty in the region (28,6 per 100 respondents), imperfection of the legal framework for corneal transplantation (26,2 per 100 respondents), long waiting times for the operation were identified patients (22,6 per 100 respondents), the lack of equipping a medical organization with modern medical equipment (20,2 per 100 respondents) and an insufficient number of quotas for operations (20,2 per 100 respondents). The absence of a donor tissue bank significantly affects the availability and quality of specialized ophthalmic medical care and requires the adoption of appropriate organizational measures. Experts note the need to provide medical organizations with an adequate amount of donor material. In this case, the improvement of the regulatory framework governing the issues of donation and corneal transplantation is of great importance. The creation of tissue banks in various constituent entities of the Russian Federation will shorten the waiting time for keratoplasty by patients and increase the degree of satisfaction rendered to them by medical care.