Reconstruction and healing: amniotic membrane grafts: history, prospects and development

The ancestral therapeutic use of the placenta and its components is probably as old as humanity. Its structure and biological properties give it its trophic and healing role, with the use of the internal membrane of the amnion in skin burns from the beginning of the 20th century. Explored by many specialities such as dermatology, ENT, neurosurgery, digestive surgery, gynecology ... its use in ophthalmology really began in the 1990s. The structure of the membrane offers the possibility of compensating tissue defects and its biological properties to address cellular deficits. Isolated or combined with other restorative therapies, amniotic membrane grafts are common procedures in ocular surface surgery. Recent developments explore the use of other structures derived from the placenta: cord membrane, Wharton's jelly, as well as the use of the amniotic membrane in other ocular structures (retina) while fundamental research ongoing (source of potential progenitor stem cells and regenerative medicine)