Allogeneic serum eye drops: time these became the norm?

Implementation of a standardised method for the production of allogeneic serum eye drops from regular blood donors in a Norwegian University Hospital: Some methodological aspects and clinical considerations

“…The use of serum eye drops to treat ocular diseases was first reported by Fox et al [6]. In the recent years, the use of allogeneic serum eye drops has been increasing as an alternative, when the use of autologous eye drops was not feasible or clinically possible, and their use is now approved by the New Zealand Blood Service Clinical Advisory Group and the regulatory authority in New Zealand (Medsafe) [8].…”

“…In contrast to the Danish group, we decided to use only AB group blood donors to make the logistics easier, even if the use of matched ABO serum might be unnecessary [8].…”

Serum eye drop preparation in Australia: Current manufacturing practice

“…As such allogeneic serum eye drops may be a cost-effective alternative, and they have been shown to be safe and clinically effective [13,17,19]. The New Zealand Blood Service has provided allogeneic serum eye drops since 2007, which are produced from both whole blood collected from both male and female AB donors, and account for 39% of their serum eye drop treatments [28,29]. Other countries also appear to be adopting allogeneic eye drops [17].…”

Blood-derived topical therapy for ocular surface diseases

“…However, three of the four studies on allogeneic serum eye drops did not consider ABO blood type matching in their methods, and no adverse reactions were noted to occur. In New Zealand, where 39% of serum eye drops used since 2007 have been allogeneic, blood type AB donors whose serum therefore lacked anti-A and anti-B antibodies have been used in 73 patients with no reported adverse reactions 53. Given the potential of allogeneic serum to be as effective as autologous serum in the treatment of DES and PEDs, and its demonstrated safety without the need for matching donors with recipients, allogeneic serum may be a viable alternative to autologous serum in ocular surface disease management if more rigorously studied.…”