Doctors transplant corneas in Libya

A Maltese medical team from Saint James Hospital Group has successfully carried out eight corneal transplants in Libya.

The transplants, conducted on Libyan patients in the eye hospitals of Tripoli and Benghazi, were carried out in conjunction with the Libyan government's Health Department.

The operations were performed as part of a programme under the auspices of the Libyan National Committee for the Prevention of Blindness.

The ophthalmic team was composed of consultant ophthalmologist Franco Mercieca and his assistants Brian Bondin, Mark Debono and Mylene Finuliar.

The ophthalmic team was already acquainted with the hospitality offered by the medical teams of hospitals in Tripoli, but this was the first time the team offered its services in Benghazi, Saint James Hospital said.

The venture was part of a full cooperation programme between the Saint James Hospital Group and the Libyan medical teams. Without a joint team effort these operations could not have been made possible, the hospital said.

The programme in Benghazi also included the review of patients and clinical presentations for the local personnel.

This is the fourth such medical hands-on programme successfully carried out between the group and Libyan hospitals. The first two involved specialised cardiology interventions.