Abstract
A polypropylene surgical suture, which had served as fixation suture for an IOL for a period of 6.5 years, was removed from the eye of a Dutch patient because it had broken at one end and thus formed a potential risk for a corneal touch syndrome. After careful rinsing in 50% ethanol, to remove adhering debris, it was prepared for SEM.
A virgin piece of polypropylene material from a surgical package underwent the same preparative procedure.
The fixation suture showed cracks perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the suture; part of the surface layer was nearly detached or completely missing; while the diameter of the suture was decreased towards both ends by over 50% in comparison with the original diameter.The exposed subsurface layer showed a fibrillar structure. The degradation phenomena are considered to be caused by the enzymatic action of tissue-fluids.
Virgin material did not show any of the phenomena observed on the fixation suture under consideration.
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The work was carried out at the Centre for Medical Electron Microscopy.
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Jongebloed, W.L., Worst, J.F.G. Degradation of polypropylene in the human eye: A sem-study. Doc Ophthalmol 64, 143–152 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00166695
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00166695