When can I lift heavy things after a corneal transplant?

The concern with lifting is straining. Straining raises pressure inside the eye and pushes on a wound that is being held together by fine stitches. An Academy answer about exercise after corneal transplant warns that if the sutures break and the corneal wound opens, infection and vision threatening problems can follow, and advises no rigorous physical activity for at least six weeks.

The Cornea Research Foundation of America adds a longer view for full thickness grafts: patients must be careful for the rest of their lives to avoid any injury that could break open the incision, because the wound edge is never quite as strong as an unoperated cornea. The Academy answer describes wounds reopening from trauma as long as ten years after transplant.

After DMEK or DSAEK the incision is small and there are few or no stitches, so restrictions are lighter and shorter. Even so, in the first days you are protecting a graft that is being held by a bubble, so straining and bending are not a good idea until your surgeon says otherwise.