Amniotic Membrane Transplantation

The past decade has witnessed the revival of amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT)in ophthalmology. The importance of amniotic membrane lies in its ability to reduceinflammation and scarring, enhance epithelialization and wound healing, and in its antimicrobialproperties. Amniotic membrane has recently been used as a substrate for culturinglimbal stem cells for transplantation. It has also been used extensively in cornealconditions such as neurotrophic ulcers, persistent epithelial defects, shield ulcers, microbialkeratitis, band keratopathy, bullous keratopathy, and following photorefractivekeratectomy and chemical injuries. Other indications for AMT include ocular surface reconstructionsurgery for conjunctival pathologies such as squamous neoplasia, pterygium,and symblepharon. In this review we describe the basic structure and propertiesof amniotic membrane, its preparation process and its applications in ophthalmology.