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Trypan blue staining aids in performing proliferative vitreoretinopathy surgery
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WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — Despite advances in vitreoretinal surgical techniques, proliferative vitreoretinopathy remains an obstacle to successful surgical repair.
“It’s actually responsible for 75% of all primary surgical failures,” Sophie J. Bakri, MD, said at Retina 2013.
Sophie J. Bakri
The key to successful membrane removal in proliferative vitreoretinopathy is visualization and preservation of the membranes so they can be peeled safely, she said.
Trypan blue shows proliferative vitreoretinopathy, epiretinal membranes, whether membrane is focal or diffuse, and hidden retinal breaks, Bakri said. With better visualization, the case is done more quickly, lessening light toxicity, inflammation and the amount of anesthesia time, especially when general anesthesia is used.
“All the concerns about stains are related to toxicity, but on the other hand, we have to think that the longer it takes you to do the surgery with poor visualization, light toxicity would be induced that way,” she said.
Disclosure: Bakri is a consultant for Allergan and Genentech.