Jacob T, LaCour O J, Burgoyne C F, LaFleur P K, Duzman E
Lions Eye Research Laboratories, LSU Eye Center, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, New Orleans 70112-2234, USA.
J Glaucoma. 2001 Apr;10(2):115-20. doi: 10.1097/00061198-200104000-00008.
To determine whether a synthetic material, expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (E-PTFE), can be used successfully as a reinforcement material over the tubes of glaucoma drainage implants.
Patches of E-PTFE were sutured over the tubes of Baerveldt glaucoma drains implanted in the eyes of New Zealand white rabbits. Two material thicknesses were tested: 0.5 mm in four eyes and 0.25 mm in five eyes. Rabbit donor scleral patches were used in five eyes as the control. Total ocular health and intraocular pressure were monitored every 2 weeks after the procedure. Six months after implantation, the eyes were harvested and analyzed histologically.
Two of the four eyes that received 0.5-mm thick E-PTFE patches showed some conjunctival melting over the anterior corners of the material close to the limbus. All five eyes that received 0.25-mm thick E-PTFE patches showed a healthy cellular wound healing response and no conjunctival melting. Cellular infiltration and collagen deposition in the E-PTFE materials showed integration of the patch material into the surrounding tissue. In the control eyes, marked thinning and resorption of the donor sclera immediately above the drainage tube was noted.
Thin (0.25 mm) E-PTFE patches were well tolerated in all rabbit eyes tested. Thin E-PTFE should be investigated further as a functional alternative to donor sclera for reinforcement in glaucoma drain surgery.
确定合成材料膨体聚四氟乙烯（E-PTFE）能否成功用作青光眼引流植入物引流管的加固材料。
将E-PTFE补片缝合在植入新西兰白兔眼内的Baerveldt青光眼引流管上。测试了两种材料厚度：4只眼中使用0.5毫米厚的材料，5只眼中使用0.25毫米厚的材料。5只眼使用兔供体巩膜补片作为对照。术后每2周监测眼部整体健康状况和眼压。植入6个月后，摘除眼球并进行组织学分析。
接受0.5毫米厚E-PTFE补片的4只眼中，有2只在靠近角膜缘的材料前角处出现了一些结膜溶解。接受0.25毫米厚E-PTFE补片的所有5只眼均表现出健康的细胞伤口愈合反应，且无结膜溶解。E-PTFE材料中的细胞浸润和胶原沉积表明补片材料与周围组织融合。在对照眼中，观察到引流管上方的供体巩膜明显变薄和吸收。
在所有测试的兔眼中，薄（0.25毫米）E-PTFE补片耐受性良好。薄E-PTFE作为青光眼引流手术中供体巩膜加固的功能性替代材料，应进一步研究。
