METHODS: A retrospective analysis of the clinical data of patients treated at the Corneal Disease Department of Xi'an No.1 Hospital and underwent related surgical treatments between January 1, 2018 and December 30, 2022 was conducted. The gender, age, disease classification, surgical method, and residence were analyzed.

RESULTS: This study included 139 children(139 eyes, aged ≤14 y)with corneal diseases, comprising 67 males(48.2%)and 72 females(51.8%). Acquired non-traumatic corneal diseases constituted the largest proportion(67 cases, 48.2%), primarily due to infectious corneal diseases(41 patients, 29.5%). Congenital corneal diseases accounted for 52 cases(37.4%). There were 20 cases with acquired-traumatic corneal dieases(14.4%), involving 11 male and 9 female patients. Geographically, 102(73.4%)patients resided in Shaanxi Province, 26(18.7%)in Gansu Province, 8(5.8%)in Qinghai Province, and 3(2.1%)in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. No patients were from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Regarding primary surgical intervention, 65 patients underwent penetrating keratoplasty(PKP), 34 underwent lamellar keratoplasty(LKP), 31 underwent amniotic membrane transplantation(AMT), and 9 underwent other surgical procedures. The corresponding proportions of these primary surgeries were 46.8%, 24.4%, 22.3%, and 6.5%. The overall corneal transplantation rate was 71.2%.

CONCLUSION: Infectious corneal diseases, corneal dermoids, and corneal trauma constitute the primary etiologies of pediatric corneal diseases treated with surgery in the hospital. Corneal transplantation surgery constitutes a cornerstone intervention for addressing these diseases and represents an effective therapeutic approach for pediatric corneal blindness.