In addition to the placenta, umbilical cord and amniotic fluid, the amniotic membrane is emerging as an immensely valuable and easily accessible source of stem and progenitor cells. This concise review will focus on the stem/progenitor cell properties of human amniotic epithelial and mesenchymal stromal cells and evaluate the effects exerted by these cells and the amniotic membrane on tissue in...

BACKGROUND We evaluated the efficiency of amniotic membrane grafts (AMGs) for reconstructing the conjunctival surface following excision of corneal and conjunctival intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). METHODS This was a retrospective, noncomparative, interventional study. Five eyes in 5 patients were treated between April 1996 and September 2002 with the same procedure to apply amniotic membrane...

Purpose To report the outcome of self-retained amniotic membrane after debridement in recurrent dendritic keratitis. Observations A 70-year-old female with a recurrent dendritic corneal ulcer received debridement followed by placement of self-retained amniotic membrane. Five days after treatment, the patient experienced a complete resolution of symptoms, marked reduction of inflammation, comp...

A retrospective case series demonstrating the use of dehydrated human amniotic membrane (dHAM) allografts in the treatment of wounds of various aetiologies. Amniotic membrane was applied to a series of chronic wounds referred to a formal wound clinic for aggressive management, after prior, traditional treatment methods were found ineffective, over a period of 1 month. In each case, failure of ...

INTRODUCTION Chemical burns of the eyes are one of the important causes of visual disability. Chemical burns particularly alkali burn may lead to gross limbal stem cell deficiency. Amniotic membrane transplantation with limbal graft is a good method for ocular surface reconstruction. CASE A 39 years male presented to Biratnagar Eye Hospital after 5 months of chemical injury with redness, pain...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the outcomes of amniotic membrane transplantation for symptomatic relief in patients with bullous keratopathy. MATERIAL AND METHOD This retrospective study included 17 eyes (17 patients) with bullous keratopathy presenting with intractable pain or discomfort. The patients were enrolled from January 2000 to December 2004. Amniotic membrane transplantation was performed. ...

Objective- This study was performed to evaluate and compare grossly and pathologically two surgical techniques of amniotic membrane patching on experimental corneal alkali burn in dogs.   Design- Experimental study.   Animals- Fifteen healthy dogs   Procedures- The central corneas of the dogs were inflicted by applying a round filter paper, 6.0 mm in diameter, soaked in 1 N NaOH for 60 sec. ...

INTRODUCTION Amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT) has been used for a wide variety of ocular surface problems. Current techniques for the AMT involve suturing of the graft or patch over the ocular surface or use of fibrin glue. OBJECTIVE To describe a new sutureless technique of amniotic membrane transplantation (AMT) without the use of sutures/fibrin glue. MATERIALS AND METHODS Amniotic...

OBJECTIVES Umbilical cord blood is a good source of the mesenchymal stem cells that can be banked, expanded and used in regenerative medicine. The objective of this study was to test whether amniotic membrane extract, as a rich source of growth factors such as basic-fibroblast growth factor, can promote the proliferation potential of the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells. MATERIALS AND ME...