Pneumococcal endophthalmitis following grafting of corneal tissue from a (cadaver) kidney donor

In order to stress the need for continued vigilance in maintaining the highest standards of quality control for corneal tissue used for transplantation, we are presenting 2 cases of pneumococcal endophthalmitis which occurred in tissue transplanted from a young donor who died following acute trauma. The patient had been on cardiovascular support for over 26 hours and had suffered from a febrile illness which on autopsy revealed bronchial pneumonia. Both kidney recipients from the same donor died of myocardial infarctions on the same day in separate cities, 2 days after kidney transplantation surgery. Several recommendations are made which should assist all eye banks in providing the highest quality tissue and in preventing the occurrence of infection transmitted donor tissue.