The cornea is the clear part of the eye facing the outside world. Ordinarily, nerves provide protective sensation to the cornea. However, if these nerves are impaired or absent, then people cannot protect the cornea from scratches, and the cornea develops ulcerations and opaque scars. Because the scars are opaque, light cannot pass to into the eye, causing permanent blindness. Patients with NK sometimes lose vision rapidly and sometimes it progresses over years. ​

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Traditionally, NK has been treated by eyedrops, sewing the eyelids together (called “tarsorrhaphy”), or with custom contact lenses, but these treatments do not treat the underlying problem, which is the lack of nerves in the cornea. The word “neurotrophic” means “caused by nerve problems,” and “keratopathy” means “corneal disease.”

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Recently, surgeons have developed a nerve-based surgery to treat NK, in which nerve grafts are transplanted into the cornea, enabling regional sensory nerves to grow through the nerve grafts into the affected cornea and provide protection. This approach, called corneal neurotization, has been used in hundreds of patients to protect the cornea.

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NK remains poorly understood due to insufficient research, but ongoing scientific research is being conducted to better understand how to treat NK.

 

WINKS envisions a future in which NK is no longer a threat to sight.