EYE BANK

Eye Bank

Eye banking and Keratoplasty were started in the year 2010 at JPM and have shown promising results. JPM has also been instrumental in increasing awareness for donating corneas through various modes. Corneas are obtained from donors and implanted in corneally blind people or people with vision-threatening conditions through cornea related infections.

A composite unit with a fully-equipped ambulance, along with a doctor and paramedical staff, has been set up as part of the eye bank aims at promoting the cause of eye donation while providing vision to the blind in and around Cuttack city and its neighbouring districts.

Any person can donate, except persons suffering from HIV, Hepatitis B & C, Encephalitis, and cancer. When an organ/tissue donor dies, consent for donation is obtained either from a donor registry or from the donor’s next of kin. A recovery technician is then dispatched to the hospital, funeral home, or medical examiner’s office to recover the donor’s eyes. The recovery occurs within 6 hours of the death of the donor. The entire eye, called the globe, may be surgically removed (enucleated), or only the cornea may be excised in-situ and placed in storage media. There is a wide variety of storage media used in eye banking and can be stored up to 48 hours.