Retina damage and repair after high-frequency monopolar electrocoagu-lation by suprachorioid access

Abstract

Retinal detachment (RD), its rupture, concussion, hemorrhage require urgent ophthalmic surgical intervention without fail. Restoring the anatomical integrity of the detached retina, the speed of surgical intervention, the choice of access and method of surgery, the quality of the surgical instrument are directly causally related to visual acuity, the number and severity of postoperative complications. The best complex ophthalmosurgical solutions relieve vitreoretinal surgeons of the need for vitrectomy and postoperative tamponade, provide sufficient strength of the chorioretinal connection, cause little oedema in the surgical site, a minimal atrophy, and a quick repair process. An important objective indicator of the optimal choice of the tool, access and nature of the intervention is minimal damage of the retina neurolayer and a decrease in its thickness due to surgical impact. This publication is devoted to the second phase of an experiment on animals, which simulates an operation to restore the anatomical integrity of a detached retina. The parameters of high-frequency monopolar electrocoagulation (current 0.1 A, voltage 10–16 V, frequency 66 kHz, suprachoroidal access, instrument of the original design with a extreme part of sphere diameter of 25 G) remain unchanged. For the second phase of the experiment, 30 adult rabbits (60 eyes) were used, divided into three experimental groups (10 animals, 20 eyes each) according to the exposure voltage (I – 10–12 V, II – 12–14 V, III – 14–16 V) and euthanized 1 week, 2 weeks and 1 month after surgery. The experiment took into account the data of its first phase regarding the control (IV) group of animals, which included 6 intact rabbits (12 eyes), as well as observations 1 hour and 3 days after the operation. The morphological structure of rabbit eyes was studied with an emphasis on the processes of oedema, atrophy and thickness of the retina. Keywords: chorioretinal surgery, experimental ophthalmic surgery, retinal detachment, retinal thickness.