Abstract
Purpose :
In the treatment of retinal detachment there is the need for a sufficient, biocompatible and biodegradable tamponade. Therefore, we evaluated the effect on the intraocular pressure (IOP), the rate of retinal detachment, fibrin and cataract induction of a thiolated cross-linked artificial vitreous body substitutes (VBS) based on hyaluronic acid (HA) in comparison to non-operated eyes in a model of tolerability.
Methods :
On the right eye of 20 pigmented rabbits pars plana vitrectomy (23G) was performed. After vitrectomy of the vitreous body and fluid-air-exchange the eye was filled with the cross-linked hydrogel. The left eye served as control. Follow-up examination included slit lamp examination, funduscopy and IOP measurements. After a follow-up of 1, 3 or 6 months both eyes were removed examined macroscopically, photographed and prepared for histology.
Results :
As expected, after 6 months no fibrin was detectable in the right operated eye. Over the whole follow-up period cataract induction was seen in 28% of the operated eyes. During follow-up of 6 months the eye pressure of the right eye did not show significant differences (p< 0.05) compared to the left eye and no retinal detachment was found in this group (n=6). Nevertheless, during the total follow-up period (1month, 3 months, 6 months (n=20)) there was a retinal detachment rate of 22%. Analysis of histology indicated a significant difference between the GFAP expression, but no significant difference in Brn3a (RGC-marker) expression (p<0.05).
Conclusions :
In this study, the thiolated cross-linked hyaluronate hydrogel showed a high retinal attachment rate and a stable effect on the eye pressure and therefore has a promising potential as novel vitreous body substitute.
This abstract was presented at the 2019 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Vancouver, Canada, April 28 - May 2, 2019.