Is it possible to restore sight through eye transplantation after eye loss? The eye is like an extremely delicate, fully automatic camera. When the cornea and lens become cloudy, i.e. opaque in relation to the lens of the camera, corneal transplantation and IOL implantation can be used to help restore or improve vision. However, the current state of science does not yet allow for total eye transplantation. However, it is encouraging to know that a movable prosthetic eye can help patients with an atrophied eye regain their confidence in life. Which patients need eye removal surgery? There are patients who have lost their eyesight due to trauma or certain eye diseases and then have a shrinking (e.g., ocular atrophy) or bulging (e.g., corneal or scleral chylomicron) eye, and there are also patients who have lost their eyesight due to eye diseases and still have pain in their eyes (e.g., glaucoma absolute stage). In this case, eye removal surgery is required to improve the appearance or relieve the pain. What is a movable prosthetic eye? A movable prosthetic eye consists of two parts: the eye table and the prosthetic eye piece. For patients who need an eye removal or have already had an eye removal, the surgeon may implant an artificial eye table (also called an eye seat or eye rest) in the tissue of the eye socket, which can be connected to the eye muscle that governs eye movement. After the tissue covering the front of the eye table has healed, a prosthetic eye piece is placed in the conjunctival sac in front of the eye table, which can be drawn to match the color of the healthy eye. When the eye table is rotated, the prosthetic eye piece can be driven to rotate. Who is a candidate for mobile prosthetic eye surgery? Patients who are candidates for eye removal or enucleation, patients who have already had eye removal or enucleation, and patients with congenital microphthalmia or absence of an eye are eligible for mobile prosthetic eye surgery. Is mobile prosthetic eye surgery done at the same time as ophthalmopexy or ocular enucleation? What is a stage I ocular table implant and what is a stage II ocular table implant? In the absence of infectious inflammation, malignant tumors, or significant post-traumatic edema, an eye table implantation can be done at the same time as an ophthalmopexy or enucleation, i.e., a stage I eye table implantation. In the case of second-stage ocular table implantation, the ocular table implantation is performed after a certain period of time (usually 1-2 months) after ocular extraction or enucleation of ocular contents. In the case of septic endophthalmitis, enucleation of the eye contents should be performed first, and then the eye table implantation should be performed 2-3 months later. After removal of the eye due to malignant tumor, the eye table implantation should be performed only after 6 months of observation for no recurrence of the tumor. For non-sutured ruptured eye injuries, most of which are associated with intraorbital soft tissue injuries and hematoma, the eye table implantation can be performed after the swelling of the intraorbital soft tissue is basically absorbed, so that the appropriate size of eye table can be selected. What kind of material is the movable eye prosthesis made of? The eye table in a mobile prosthetic eye is also known as an intraorbital implant. The most advanced intraorbital implant material is inline porous hydroxyapatite, which is the main inorganic component of human bone and can be highly accepted by the recipient tissue after implantation. The recipient new blood vessels can gradually grow into its inline porous structure and form blood flow inside it, which greatly improves the blood supply to the tissue in front of it and strengthens the resistance to mechanical damage and infection, thus significantly reducing the chance of implant body detachment. The hydroxyapatite eye table can be fully vascularized 8-12 months after implantation. The prosthetic eye piece in the movable prosthetic eye is made of polymer material and is configured according to the color of the patient’s healthy eye. Is there an age limit for having a movable prosthetic eye surgery? In our experience, it is better to perform eye table implantation after the age of 7-8 years. In young children, the orbital development is not yet complete and only a small sized eye table can be implanted, but it will not grow with the child and may soon become sunken again. Who is not a good candidate for mobile prosthetic eye surgery? Patients who have undergone radiation therapy after malignant tumor surgery should be cautious with this surgery because of the poor blood flow to the eye and the easy prolapse of the eye table. Severe trauma, especially severe acid and alkaline burns combined with severe conjunctival sac stenosis, should also be performed with caution. Younger children should wait until they are older before considering mobile prosthetic eye surgery, and the prosthetic eye piece should be replaced regularly as the child grows. Does the surgery require hospitalization? How much will it cost? Mobile eye surgery is medically known as eye socket filler and can be performed on an outpatient basis, but children and the elderly should be hospitalized. The current inpatient deposit at our hospital is$10,000 and the outpatient medical cost is about$8,000. What are the results of successful active prosthetic eye surgery? Although the current level of medicine cannot recreate a sighted eye, successful prosthetic eye surgery can help patients regain their confidence in life, and over the past 10 years, I have performed more than 3,000 hydroxyapatite prosthetic eye implants. I have gained a lot of experience in clinical practice and have improved the surgical methods. A patient once said in a letter to me, “Although I can’t see with this prosthetic eye, I have the joy of rebuilding my sight every time I stand in front of the mirror!”