[Video recording after visualization of conjunctival lymph vessels].

AIM

The aim of the investigation is a combination of a harmless and easy method of visualisation with a suitable way or recording of the dynamic processes of flow of dye in the lymphatic vessels of the conjunctiva in human eyes in vivo.

METHOD

A visualisation method of injecting subconjunctivally 0.10 ml of a 2.5% solution of Patentblau V, was employed to study the initial lymphatic vessels (LV) of conjunctiva. The penetration of the dye in the LV was observed through an operating microscope and was filmed with the video camera attached. The anatomy of the initial LV of the conjunctiva, their size, the speed of lymph flow and the time necessary for the diffusion of the dye through the LV walls were recorded.

PATIENTS AND RESULTS

The method was applied to 16 patients suffering from various ophthalmologic and general disorders. Well-shaped lymph vessels in the conjunctiva are located circularly around the limbus, at a distance of 3-5 mm. These LV often resemble rosaries consisting of separate segments (lymphangions). The lymph flow varies in speed. When the valves shut completely, the speed of the lymph flow in the respective lymphangion equals 0, but when the valves open, the lymph may gradually or rapidly stream into the next lymphangion. The LV vary greatly in size, which depends mainly on the quantity of liquid that has penetrated inside them.

CONCLUSION

The time necessary for the dye to diffuse through the LV walls also varies greatly and depends on the type and dynamics of the disorder of the anterior eye segment, as well as on the general vascular disorders of individual patients and their effect on the permeability of the LV walls.