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. 2020 Aug;68(8):1636-1639.
doi: 10.4103/ijo.IJO_69_20.

Emulsion polymer isocyanate-gluing: Autologous epithelial transplant with cyanoacrylate glue application for small corneal perforations

Rahul K Bafna  1 , Rinky Agarwal  1 , Abhijeet Beniwal  1 , Agam Bhandari  1 , Namrata Sharma  1 , Jeewan S Titiyal  1
Affiliations

Emulsion polymer isocyanate-gluing: Autologous epithelial transplant with cyanoacrylate glue application for small corneal perforations

Rahul K Bafna et al. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Cyanoacrylate glue (CG) is a commonly employed modality for sealing small corneal perforations. Presently, we describe the technique of emulsion polymer isocyanate (EPI)-gluing, a modification of its application, and its results in nine eyes with noninfectious, nontraumatic sterile corneal perforation with size ≤3 mm. The method involves harvesting a small patch of autologous epithelium adjacent to the melt area with the help of 10% alcohol and transplanting to the site of melt with its basement membrane facing downwards. CG, loaded on the reverse side of Sinskey hook or Weck-Cel sponge, is instilled on this epithelium-melt site complex and withdrawn immediately following which a bandage contact lens is placed on the corneal surface. In our series of patients with nine eyes where EPI-gluing was undertaken, all eyes reported a healed corneal scar with spontaneously dislodged glue and no underlying vascularization at 3-months follow-up. EPI-gluing is an inexpensive and host-friendly technique for the treatment of small noninfectious corneal perforations particularly with iris tissue prolapse.

Keywords: Corneal perforation; cyanoacrylate glue; internal limiting membrane.

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Conflict of interest statement

None

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Steps of EPI-gluing; Iris prolapse in the melt area as seen on i-OCT (a); area of epithelial transplant marked (a), debrided (b and c); site of melt after epithelial transplant as seen on i-OCT (d); application of cyanoacrylate glue (e), melt-epithelium-glue complex as seen i-OCT (f)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Animated steps of EPI-gluing; Melt area (a); area of epithelial transplant marked (b), debrided (c) and placed on the site of melt (c); cyanoacrylate glue application (d)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Intraoperative (a); 1st day (b) and 3 months (c) photographs after EPI-gluing
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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