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Corrosion casts of big bubbles formed during deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty

  • Laboratory Investigation
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Abstract

Purpose

To characterize the walls of big bubbles formed during deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK) using the corrosion casting technique.

Methods

Fresh corneoscleral buttons with normal transparency and without any known eye diseases (n = 11) were obtained from 11 human donors. A 20-gauge needle was used to inject a solution of 20 % polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) immediately beneath the corneal endothelium to form big bubbles in eight corneoscleral buttons. In the second experiment on three corneoscleral buttons, a big bubble was first formed by air injection beneath the endothelium. Thereafter, 20 % PVA was injected into the bubble space. Scanning electron microscopy was used to characterize the surfaces of the casts, which replicated the walls of the big bubbles.

Results

A type-1 bubble was formed in all corneas. In one cornea, one type-1 bubble was initially formed centrally, and while it was enlarged, an eccentric type-2 bubble appeared. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the casts of type-1 bubbles had two distinct surfaces. The anterior surface demonstrated several holes or pits, depending on the material used for the bubble formation, whereas the posterior surface exhibited an uneven surface. The anterior and posterior surfaces of the type-2 cast were more or less similar. A communication measuring 531.9 µm in length and 171.4 µm in diameter was found between the two bubbles.

Conclusions

The corrosion casting technique provides a permanent three-dimensional record of the potential spaces and barriers in the posterior corneal stroma, which explains several features associated with big-bubble DALK.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ophthalmic Research Center, Labbafinejad Medical Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Boostan 9 St., Pasdaran Ave., Tehran, 16666, Iran

    Sepehr Feizi & Mohammad Ali Javadi

  2. Ocular Tissue Engineering Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mozhgan Rezaei Kanavi, Davood Kharaghani & Sahar Balagholi

  3. Department of Chemistry, Islamic Azad University-Lahijan Branch, Lahijan, Iran

    Masoumeh Meskinfam

  4. Bioengineering Department, Biomaterials Laboratory, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Masoumeh Meskinfam

  5. Central Eye Bank of Islamic Republic of Iran, Tehran, Iran

    Mohammad Ali Javadi

Authors
  1. Sepehr Feizi
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  2. Mozhgan Rezaei Kanavi
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  3. Davood Kharaghani
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  4. Sahar Balagholi
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  5. Masoumeh Meskinfam
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  6. Mohammad Ali Javadi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sepehr Feizi.

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Conflicts of interest

S. Feizi, None; M. R. Kanavi, None; D. Kharaghani, None; S. Balagholi, None; M. Meskinfam, None; M. A. Javadi, None.

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Feizi, S., Kanavi, M.R., Kharaghani, D. et al. Corrosion casts of big bubbles formed during deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty. Jpn J Ophthalmol 60, 492–499 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10384-016-0465-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10384-016-0465-x

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