Disruption of the epithelial integrity of the cornea may cause microorganisms to pass easily through the corneal epithelium and cause corneal ulcerations. Alkaline burns in the cornea may disrupt the integrity of the corneal epithelium and cause ulcerations or even perforations. There are many medical treatment options for the treatment of alkaline corneal burns. One of these medical treatment options is amniotic membrane and amniotic fluid. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the effectiveness of amniotic fluid on alkaline burns of the cornea.

Thirty Wistar Albino rats were used in the study. Rats were randomly divided into 3 groups. In order to cause an alkaline burn, a filter paper absorbed with 2N NaOH solution was kept on the cornea of the right eyes of the rats for 40 seconds. Alkaline corneal burn was created in rats in the first group and two drops of bovine amniotic fluid were dripped into the eye three times a day for 20 days. In the second group, an alkaline corneal burn was created and two drops of saline was instilled into the eye three times a day for 20 days. In the third group, no alkaline corneal burn was created and two drops of bovine amniotic fluid were dripped into the eye three times a day for 20 days. Throughout the study, clinical findings were evaluated by indirect ophthalmoscope, fluorocein test and Rose Bengal test. At the end of the study, histopathological evaluations were made to evaluate the changes in the corneal epithelium.

As a result of the clinical evaluations, it was found that corneal damage, conjunctivitis, blepharospasm and photophobia were reduced in the rats in the amniotic fluid group. Corneal perforation, severe conjunctivitis, blepharospasm and photophobia were found in rats in the second group. As a result of histopathological examinations, a statistically significant difference was found between the PK and AS groups in terms of the severity of edema and neovascularization (P<0.05).

As a result, it was concluded that amniotic fluid is effective in corneal alkalnei burns and it would be beneficial to use it in addition to medical or operative treatments.