Impacts of COVID-19 pandemic and public policies on corneal transplantations in Brazil.

The negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on corneal donations and transplantations in Brazil resulted from the recommendation of the Health Ministry to suspend the retrieval of ocular tissues from donors in cardiopulmonary arrest for almost six months. The indicators reveal the compelling requirement for updating both the classification and cornea provision criteria by the Eye Banks and improving the Brazilian corneal distribution system.