Obtaining consent for eye donation.

We prospectively studied 100 consecutive deaths at St. Vincent's Hospital and Medical Center in New York City for possible eye donation. Fifty-two patients were unsuitable mainly because of medical contraindications and age at death. Of the 48 suitable candidates, 21 pairs (44%) of eyes were obtained. Sixteen of the 42 eyes (38%) were used for transplantation. Projection of the number of corneas obtainable for transplant in New York City were calculated. The figures indicated that the three-month waiting list of the New York Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration, Inc., could be eradicated if hospitals were able to get seven donors from every 100 deaths suitable for donation, a rate only 16% of that realized in this study.