Jordan ‘leading region’ in cornea donation, transplants — eye bank

AMMAN — The success rate of cornea transplant surgeries in Jordan stands at 80 per cent, Jordan Eye Bank Director Muawiya Bdour said Saturday.

Speaking at a ceremony to honour relatives of cornea donors, Bdour said the Kingdom is in the forefront of the region’s countries in establishing an eye bank in 1979.

Pointing out that importing one cornea costs JD1,200, whereas local corneas cost nothing, Bdour added that 277 corneas were imported between 2008 and 2013, with local cornea donation increasing to meet 65 per cent of transplant needs.

Also speaking at the ceremony, HRH Prince Raad, Chief Chamberlain and president of the Friends of the Jordan Eye Bank Society, announced that the government has approved allocating a piece of land in Northern Marka for the society to construct commercial buildings to generate revenues.

He thanked the families of cornea donors for their generous gesture, noting that hundreds of people of different ages are waiting for cornea and kidney transplants.

At the end of the ceremony, Prince Raad presented honorary plaques to the society’s supporters and presented certificates of appreciation to families of cornea donors.