In Vivo Confocal Microscopy in Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency After Mesenchymal Stem Cell Transplantation: A Sub-analysis from a Phase I–II Clinical Trial

[Introduction]: The aim of this work is to evaluate the effect of mesenchymal stem cell transplantation (MSCT) and cultivated limbal epithelial transplantation (CLET) therapies on the limbus of patients suffering from limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD).
[Methods]: A sub-analysis of a phase I–II randomized, controlled, and double-masked clinical trial was performed to assess the changes in the anatomical structures of the limbus. In vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) analysis was carried out in LSCD eyes before and 12 months after allogeneic MSCT or CLET. Epithelial phenotype of the central cornea, as well as the presence of transition zones and palisades of Vogt in the limbus, were assessed using Wilcoxon test.
[Results]: Twenty-three LSCD (14 MSCT and nine CLET) eyes were included. The epithelial phenotype of the central cornea improved significantly (p < 0.001) from 15 (eight MSCT, seven CLET) and eight (six MSCT, two CLET) LSCD eyes showing conjunctival and mixed phenotypes, respectively, to eight (five MSCT, three CLET), five (two MSCT, three CLET), and ten (seven MSCT, three CLET) eyes showing conjunctival, mixed, and corneal phenotypes, respectively. Transition areas and palisades of Vogt were observed in at least one quadrant in nine (five MSCT, four CLET) and 16 (nine MSCT, seven CLET), and in four (two MSCT, two CLET) and six (three MSCT, three CLET) LSCD eyes before and after surgery, respectively. Changes in the transition zones and palisades were solely significant (p = 0.046) for the nasal and inferior quadrants, respectively.
[Conclusions]: MSCT and CLET improved the central corneal epithelial phenotype despite only minor changes in the anatomical structures of the limbus, as detected by IVCM technology.