Thursday, July 24, 2008

Abstract: More on autologous serum...

For those considering autologous serum treatment and want to delve into the nitty-gritty details, this looks promising as a source of information on preparation protocol (as I recall some of the best info on this in the past has been from Germany) but also describing alternative/related blood products.

[Autologous serum and alternative blood products for the treatment of ocular surface disorders.]Ophthalmologe. 2008 Jul;105(7):623-31.
[Article in German]
Geerling G, Unterlauft JD, Kasper K, Schrader S, Opitz A, Hartwig D

Eye drops made from autologous serum have been increasingly used in the past decade to treat ocular surface disorders such as persistent epithelial defects and dry eye. Due to biologically active ingredients such as growth factors, vitamins, and nutrients, they can be used to lubricate the ocular surface and support epithelial wound healing. According to current legal requirements, they can be dispensed only for outpatient treatment if the producer has obtained a license from the appropriate local authorities. Therefore, the production and dispensing of autologous serum eye drops in Germany is currently limited to a very few institutions and their patients. We review the current evidence on the use of serum eye drops, recommend a standard protocol for their production, and describe a number of recently emerging alternative blood products for the treatment of ocular surface diseases along with their potential advantages and limitations.

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