Evaporative Heavy Liquids for Retinal Tamponade

Abstract

Purpose : To identify a set of non-toxic optically clear heavy liquids for retinal tamponade that can evaporate within the vitreous cavity under normal biological conditions.

Methods : Four eyes of four non-vitrectomized 9 week old Dutch Belted Rabbits were injected with 8 microliters of a novel heavy liquid EOD-2, with an equivalent amount of balanced salt solution (BSS) in the other four eyes as a control. Clinical exams, fundus photos, and intraocular pressures were obtained at baseline and days 3, 8, 18, and 30.

Results : EOD-2 was noted in the posterior pole on post-injection Day 1 in all 4 treated eyes. By Day 3, EOD-2 had evaporated in all eyes, leaving a relatively large superior gas bubble near the lens. By Day 8, this gas bubble had completely disappeared, and did not return on Day 18 and Day 30 (Figure 1). Outside of the existence of EOD-2, clinical examinations and fundus photography showed no significant differences between the test eyes and those treated with BSS. Intraocular pressure readings did not differ with statistical significance relative to the eyes treated with BSS at baseline, Day 3, Day 8, Day 18, and Day 30, and showed a similar trend in fluctuations throughout the study (Figure 2).

Conclusions : EOD-2 is part of a suite of novel heavy liquid retinal tamponades that appear to be non-toxic and can evaporate and reabsorb under normal biological conditions. Much like previously reported EOD-1, EOD-2 could be used intraoperatively akin to other heavy liquid tamponades without the known drawbacks of heavy liquid retention within the eye, albeit with a faster evaporation rate from the eye.

This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.