Three-Port 20-Gauge Transconjunctival Pars Plana Vitrectomy

25th RCOphth Congress, President's Session paper: 25 years of progress in vitreoretinal surgery

Over the past 25 years, vitreoretinal surgery has undergone considerable change in technology, techniques, and professional organisation. Many conditions that were considered untreatable in 1988 are now treated routinely by vitreoretinal surgeons. Over the same period, vitreoretinal surgery has become a separate subspecialty with its own scientific meetings and professional organisation. This article describes a noncomprehensive selection of some of the highlights of the past 25 years, including the establishment and growth of BEAVRS (British and Eire Association of Vitreoretinal Surgeons), the revolution in the management of macular holes, the development of submacular surgery, and the introduction of sutureless vitrectomy.

Safety of 20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy

PURPOSE

To study the safety of 20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy.

METHODS

Clinical data of patients who underwent 20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy for the first time, for various disorders, were reviewed retrospectively. The main outcome measures were the number of sclerotomies requiring suturing as well as the intra- and postoperative complications.

RESULTS

A total of 179 operations were performed. Indications for vitrectomy included 68 idiopathic epiretinal membranes, 26 macular holes, 23 phakic and 16 pseudophakic retinal detachments, and 46 various other, less common etiologies. Of these 179 operations, 166 (93%) were sutureless. Of the 537 sclerotomies created, 25 (5%) received a single transconjunctival-scleral suture. Intraoperative complications included premature dislodging of the cannulas in 2 sclerotomies and an iatrogenic horseshoe tear at 1 sclerotomy site. Postoperative complications comprised transient hypotony in 14 cases, subconjunctival gas in 2 cases, and choroidal effusion in 1 case. No serious complications (such as endophthalmitis) were observed.

CONCLUSION

20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy can be considered safe, as the intra- and postoperative complications observed are neither numerous nor significant. Sclerotomies appear to be safe and relatively easy to perform, without compromising the advantages of sutureless surgery.

Outcome of 20-gauge transconjunctival cannulated sutureless vitrectomy using silicone oil or air tamponade

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to assess the outcome of pars plana vitrectomy using a 20-gauge transconjunctival cannulated sutureless system with air or silicone oil tamponade in cases of retinal detachment of different etiologies.

METHODS

A prospective study was performed in 60 eyes from consecutive 60 patients who underwent 20-gauge transconjunctival cannulated sutureless vitrectomy (30 eyes with air tamponade and 30 eyes with silicone oil tamponade), with the inclusion of a further 30 patients who underwent conventional 20-gauge vitrectomy and served as a control group. The main outcome measures were intraocular pressure, wound leakage, and comfort score.

RESULTS

Preoperative intraocular pressure increased from 17.67 ± 5.6 mmHg preoperatively to 18.78 ± 6.1 mmHg on the first postoperative day in group A and decreased from 16.97 ± 4.9 mmHg to 15.88 ± 5.3 mmHg in group B. These changes were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). The comfort score ranged from 1 to 5 (1 = very bad, 2 = bad, 3 = good, 4 = very good, and 5 = excellent), with a mean of 4.4 ± 0.94 in group A and 4.35 ± 0.99 in group B on the first postoperative day, and no significant difference in scores between the groups at any follow-up visit. There was intraoperative wound leakage in two cases (6.7%) in group A which required suturing and one case (3.3%) in group B, but the difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). There was no wound leakage at follow-up in either group. No cases of hypotony, endophthalmitis, or unsealed sclerotomies were noted.

CONCLUSION

Pars plana vitrectomy using a 20-gauge transconjunctival cannulated sutureless system combines the advantages of smaller-gauge vitrectomy systems with the economic advantage of not needing to purchase any additional handheld instruments. It can be used with both air and silicone oil tamponade in most cases of retinal detachment.

Corneal topographic changes following trans-conjunctival 20 gauge sutureless vitrectomy (TC20V)

PURPOSE

To assess the occurrence and magnitude of corneal topographic changes in phakic eyes undergoing Transconjuctival Cannulated 20 gauge Vitrectomy (TC20V) without scleral buckling or silicone oil tamponade.

SETTING

Prospective randomized controlled study done at Egyptian Eye Academy.

METHODS

Forty eyes of 40 patients underwent TC20V for a variety of vitreo-retinal conditions over a 1 year follow-up period. Corneal keratometric readings were obtained using Oculus Pentacam before surgery, 1 week after, and 1 month after surgery; neither scleral buckling nor silicone oil tamponade were used in order to not affect the final corneal changes. Cases with postoperative hypotony were excluded.

RESULTS

The mean preoperative K1 (vertical keratometry) was 44.87 ± 3.55, the mean preoperative K2 (horizontal keratometry) was 44.57 ± 3.68; the mean postoperative K1 after 1 week was 45.1 ± 6.82 while the mean postoperative K2 after 1 week was 45.7 ± 3.97. Using paired t-test analysis, the P-value of the K1 change was 0.01 and P-value of the K2 change was 0.02. Both indicate minimally significant differences. One month postoperative the mean K1 was 45.2 ± 2.53 and the mean K2 was 45.1 ± 1.56 and P-values of both K1 and K2 changes after 1 month were >0.05, which indicates insignificant changes.

CONCLUSION

The results showed that minimal corneal topographic changes were encountered with the use of TC20V owing to the tunnel configuration of the wound, and these changes also decrease within the first month.

[Sutureless transconjunctival 20-gauge vitrectomy]

PURPOSE

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of 20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy for a variety of vitreoretinal conditions.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This study was a retrospective clinical case series examining 29 eyes of 29 patients treated with 20-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy. The main outcome measures included intraocular pressure, visual acuity, surgical time, and intraoperative and postoperative complications.

RESULTS

The mean follow-up duration was 5.7 months. There were only two cases of postoperative ocular hypotony (6.9%) and one suspect case of endophthalmitis. Mean overall acuity improved from 0.495 logMar at baseline to 0.29 logMar (p=0.002) and mean total operative time was 19 min. We observed no cases of retinal detachment.

CONCLUSION

Twenty-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy is an effective surgical technique, but other studies are needed to confirm its safety and its value in other indications.

Transconjunctival 20-gauge pars plana vitrectomy using a single entry cannulated sutureless system

PURPOSE

Pars plana vitrectomy with a 20-gauge transconjunctival cannulated sutureless (TCS) system has the potential of combining the advantages of smaller-gauge vitrectomy systems with the economical advantage of not needing to purchase any additional handheld instruments. However, the sclerotomy size is much larger, and self-sealing sclerotomies may be more difficult to construct. Therefore, we evaluated the need for sclerotomy suturing after performing 20-gauge TCS vitrectomy.

METHODS

A retrospective chart review was performed on the first consecutive 55 eyes of 54 patients who underwent 20-gauge TCS vitrectomy. The main outcome measure was the number of sclerotomies requiring suturing and complications.

RESULTS

Of the 164 sclerotomies made, 101 sclerotomies (62%) were not sutured, whereas the remaining 63 sclerotomies (38%) were closed with a single transconjunctival- scleral suture. The reasons for suturing included leakage and gaping at the sclerotomy, conjunctiva not covering the sclerotomy site, and prevention of gas leak. Complications noted include premature dislodging of cannulas, retinal tear, hypotony, hemorrhagic choroidals, subconjunctival gas, and less than full gas fill.

CONCLUSION

Twenty-gauge transconjunctival sutureless vitrectomy is associated with risks similar to other cannulated systems while retaining most of the functionality and handheld instrumentation of the 20-gauge approach. A possibly higher sclerotomy suturing rate relative to smaller-gauge approaches is a disadvantage of this technique.

Sutureless Transconjunctival 20 Gauge Pars Plana Vitrectomy

PURPOSE

Sutureless Transconjunctival 20 Gauge Vitrectomy (20G STV) is a technique that reduces the operating time and the post-operative inflammation.

PATIENTS AND METHOD

Eighty-four eyes underwent this new technique. Conjunctival diathermy over the ports before sclerostomy produced adhesions adequate to stop transoperative conjunctival chemosis. The MVR blade introduced into the conjunctiva-sclera in a bevelled direction. The tunnel incision that was created left without a suture at the end of the operation.

RESULTS

Three patients (3,5%) had hypotony (2-6 mmHg) on day 1 that was normalized 3 days later. Two of them had a bleb formation and the rest a very minor leakage through a flat conjunctiva. No other serious complications occurred as a result of this novel transconjunctival approach. Also there were no differences in visual acuity, intraocular pressure, redetachments, or inflammations between the patients who underwent this technique and the patients having the conventional 20-gauge pars plana technique.

CONCLUSION

20G STV is a safe and practical technique for the full spectrum of vitreoretinal surgery. It makes the surgery quicker and is well tolerated by patients.

A comparative study of tissue glue and vicryl suture for conjunctival and scleral closure in conventional 20-gauge vitrectomy

AIM

To describe the use of tissue glue to close scleral and conjunctival wounds, and to compare the clinical outcomes using tissue glue and vicryl suture for closing these areas in conventional 20-gauge (G) vitrectomy.

METHODS

Thirty eyes of 30 patients were included in this study. The indications for vitreoretinal surgery were diabetic vitreous haemorrhage with severe vitreoretinal traction in 10 eyes, retinal detachment and proliferative vitreoretinopathy in 14 eyes, and vitreous opacity in 6 eyes. Tissue glue (Tisseel, Baxter AG Industries, Vienna, Austria) was used to attach scleral and conjunctival wounds in 15 eyes and vicryl sutures in 15 eyes. The patients were allotted into two subgroups as tissue glue group (TG) and vicryl suture group (VG). The sclerotomy sites were evaluated with ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) postoperatively in TG. Follow-up period was 2 months. The groups were statistically compared for ocular signs and symptoms by Mann-Whitney U-test.

RESULTS

No scleral wound leakage and conjunctival reattachment were observed at the end of the surgical procedure and during the follow-up period. No adverse effects were seen in TG. Abnormal fibrous ingrowth was not detected at the sclerotomy sites by means of UBM in TG. Patient comfort was significantly higher in TG than VG (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Tissue glue has no adverse effects on ocular tissue and can be used as a substitute for suture materials, and the use of tissue glue decreases patient symptoms during the postoperative period after 20-G vitrectomy. Tissue glue can enable to perform sutureless surgery in the conventional 20-G vitrectomy.