Is a gritty or stitch feeling normal after a corneal transplant?

What's normal

A full thickness (PK) graft is held with many fine sutures around the edge of the cornea. Your eyelid passes over them with every blink, so a gritty or foreign body feeling is a normal part of that recovery. It often comes and goes and tends to improve as sutures are removed. Published patient guidance describes suture removal typically beginning around three to six months after surgery, with about two stitches taken at a visit and only when the surgeon judges the wound strong enough.

After DSAEK or DMEK the incision is small and needs just a few stitches, if any, so the gritty feeling is usually milder and shorter. Dryness from drops and from a healing surface adds to it in both cases. Lubricating drops your surgeon approves can help.

Usually strongest in the first weeks after PK and improves as sutures are removed over the following months.

When it stops being normal

The P in the RSVP rejection mnemonic is defined by the Cornea Research Foundation of America as pain, irritation, foreign body sensation, or discomfort without a direct cause. So a new, unexplained gritty feeling, especially with redness or blurring, is worth a call rather than waiting.

A sudden sharp scratchy feeling in one spot can mean a suture has broken or loosened and is exposed. That needs prompt attention, because a loose stitch is an infection risk and a broken stitch can affect the wound. Do not rub the eye to chase the feeling.