After death of a person, how long cornea can be preserved?

NORCET 6 Prelims -2024

Medical & Surgical Nursing

Easy

Appeared in: NORCET 6 Prelims -2024

Explanation

6 hours, which is considered the 'golden period' for corneal harvesting after death.
The cornea is avascular and relies on aqueous humor and tears for nutrients. After death, its cells, especially the vital endothelial cells, begin to degrade rapidly.
Harvesting within 6 hours ensures the highest tissue viability and increases the success rate of corneal transplantation.
This timeframe is a standard guideline followed by most eye banks to ensure the quality of the donated tissue.

Option A: 12 hours is generally too long for corneal retrieval unless the body has been kept under refrigerated conditions. Without cooling, significant cellular degradation occurs, making the cornea less suitable for transplant.
Option B: While better than 12 hours, 8 hours is still outside the optimal 6-hour window. The quality of the cornea begins to decline significantly after 6 hours without refrigeration.
Option D: While retrieving the cornea within 2 hours is excellent for tissue quality, it is not the standard maximum time limit. The established protocol allows for a longer window, up to 6 hours.

Visual 1: Infographic: Steps for Post-Mortem Eye Care. This visual can outline the key nursing actions (closing eyelids, elevating head, applying cool packs) to preserve corneal viability.
Visual 2: Diagram: Anatomy of the Eye. A cross-section of the eye highlighting the cornea's location and its avascular nature can help students understand why it degrades quickly.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Post-mortem cornea harvesting and preservation timeline as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses are often the first healthcare professionals to interact with the family of a deceased person and are in a key position to identify potential organ/tissue donors and initiate the donation process.
Prompt nursing action, such as closing the eyelids and elevating the head, is critical to preserving the cornea's viability, directly impacting the success of a future transplant.
Understanding the contraindications (e.g., septicemia, HIV) is crucial for nurses to screen potential donors appropriately and avoid unsafe donations.

How to Approach the Question

Identify the core of the question: It asks for a specific time frame related to a medical procedure (corneal preservation).
Recognize this as a factual recall question based on established medical and nursing protocols for organ donation.
Recall the standard 'golden period' for corneal harvesting. The key is to remember the specific number of hours that ensures tissue viability.
Evaluate the options. 6 hours is the standard guideline taught in nursing curricula for eye donation.
Eliminate other options: 12 and 8 hours are too long without special preservation methods like refrigeration, and 2 hours is unnecessarily short as the standard allows for more time.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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