Residents of Nizhny Novgorod can now access corneal transplant surgeries under the compulsory health insurance policy for the first time.

      Interventions are primarily indicated for patients with extremely severe fungal or infectious eye lesions. Residents of the Nizhny Novgorod region now have access to corneal transplant surgeries under the compulsory medical insurance policy for the first time, as reported by the Ministry of Health of the Nizhny Novgorod region. This new type of high-tech medical assistance has been implemented at the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Clinical Hospital named after N. A. Semashko, which is part of the flagship gubernatorial project "City of Health." Since the beginning of March, four such interventions have already been successfully performed here. According to the regional health ministry, penetrating keratoplasty is primarily indicated for patients with extremely severe fungal or infectious eye lesions. For them, this is a chance to restore nearly completely lost vision. Transplantation may also be necessary for patients with age-related degenerative changes in the cornea or for those whose cornea has become cloudy due to trauma. All transplants are performed at the 1st Ophthalmology Department of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Clinical Hospital named after N. A. Semashko. A so-called "eye bank" has been established here – before the surgery, donor material is specially processed using disinfecting and preserving solutions. According to ophthalmic surgeon Dmitry Voynov from the 1st Ophthalmology Department of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Clinical Hospital named after N. A. Semashko, the penetrating keratoplasty operation lasts about an hour. "It is too early to talk about stable results: currently, all operated patients are undergoing rehabilitation, and their vision is gradually returning. Patients are already able to navigate the ward independently. We continue to monitor and provide necessary medical interventions," the doctor said. Dmitry Voynov emphasized that penetrating keratoplasty has long been one of the most anticipated surgeries in the Nizhny Novgorod region. "Transplantation restores vision to people, and thus their usual quality of life. Previously, residents of Nizhny Novgorod had to undergo surgery in Cheboksary and Moscow. Today, a waiting list for such interventions is already forming at the Regional Clinical Hospital," he stated. Corneal transplantation is performed in the region free of charge, with selection for surgeries carried out at the consulting clinic of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Clinical Hospital named after N. A. Semashko. The main condition for including a patient on the waiting list is the presence of medical indications for corneal transplantation. In the near future, Nizhny Novgorod ophthalmic surgeons plan to apply the technology of layered corneal transplantation. This is an even more effective type of transplantation that allows restoring lost vision to nearly 100%.