Combined 25- and 23-gauge surgery: a new sutureless vitrectomy technique.

The 25- and 23-gauge sutureless vitrectomy techniques decrease the surgical trauma and improve patients' postoperative comfort. The disadvantages of the 25-gauge system include pliable instrument and slower gel removal. The 23-gauge system provides faster speed of vitrectomy and the instruments have stiffer shafts, but it requires a larger incision. To circumvent some of these limitations, a new sutureless transconjunctival vitrectomy technique that combines 23- and 25-gauge cannulas and instruments was studied. Fifty-three patients underwent vitreoretinal surgery using two 25-gauge ports for the infusion and light probe and one 23-gauge port for the vitreous cutter and various instruments. No intraoperative or postoperative complications were noted and no cases required conversion to another technique.

Effect of peripheral retinal ablation with cryotherapy versus diode laser photocoagulation on axial length in the growing rabbit eye.

AIMS: To evaluate and compare the effects of peripheral retinal cryotherapy and diode laser photocoagulation on axial length, anterior chamber depth, and lens thickness in developing rabbit eyes. METHODS: 26 eyes of 6 week old Abbit rabbits were randomly assigned to undergo laser photocoagulation or cryotherapy of the peripheral retina. Eight eyes of four untreated rabbits served as controls. Biometric and intraocular pressure measurements were performed at 0, 5, and 10 weeks after treatment. RESULTS: Five rabbits died, leaving 10 rabbits (20 eyes) in the study group and two (four eyes) in the control group. Average axial lengths for the control, laser treated, and cryo treated eyes were 15.72 mm, 16.08 mm, and 16.11 mm, respectively, at baseline and 17.48 mm, 18.09 mm, and 19.4 mm, respectively, at 10 weeks after treatment (p = 0.028, paired Wilcoxon test). Anterior chamber depth increased from 2.2 mm to 2.5 mm in both treatment groups, and from 2.14 mm to 2.28 mm in the control group. Lens thickness averaged 5.11 mm in the control group and 5.38 mm in the treatment groups before treatment, and 6.34 mm, 6.31 mm, and 6.38 mm, respectively, 10 weeks after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Peripheral retinal cryotherapy causes a significantly greater elongation of the eye compared to diode laser photocoagulation in a rabbit model.