Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jul 1;10(8):27.
doi: 10.1167/tvst.10.8.27.

Laser-Activated Corneal Adhesive: Retinal Safety in Rabbit Model

Jackie Tan  1 , Leslie John Ray Foster  1   2 , Frank James Lovicu  1 , Stephanie Louise Watson  1
Affiliations

Laser-Activated Corneal Adhesive: Retinal Safety in Rabbit Model

Jackie Tan et al. Transl Vis Sci Technol. .

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether laser irradiation, used to activate an adhesive for sealing penetrating corneal incisions, causes any ophthalmoscopically or histologically visible retinal changes.

Methods: Baseline fundus assessment was conducted prior to laser irradiation of eyes of pigmented Dutch Belted rabbits. Treatment group was 18 eyes with the corneal adhesive activated in situ by a near infrared laser (125 mW for 45 seconds). The positive control group was 18 eyes, each irradiated for 60 seconds at 375, 500, 625, and 750 mW at different retinal locations. Unexposed regions of the retina were used as negative internal control. Ophthalmoscopic assessment was conducted immediately after laser exposure and prior to euthanasia. Retinas were histologically assessed at 0, 3, 72, and 168 hours after treatment.

Results: No ophthalmoscopically or histologically visible retinal changes were observed in the treatment group immediately, nor up to 168 hours after laser irradiation. In the positive control group, the incidences of ophthalmoscopically visible retinal lesions increased with irradiation power: 5.6% at 375 mW, 16.7% at 500 mW, 44.4% at 625 mW, and 50% at 750 mW. Histologically, retinal damage was observed as coagulative necrosis to all layers of the neural retina, including the retinal pigment epithelium.

Conclusions: The laser irradiation process used in the corneal adhesive technology did not cause any ophthalmoscopically or histologically visible retinal changes in the in vivo pigmented rabbit model. Prolonged exposure with this laser and at higher power can cause coagulative necrosis to the retina.

Translational relevance: The corneal adhesive can be applied in humans without causing laser retinal damage.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure: J. Tan, None; L.J.R. Foster, None; F.J. Lovicu, None; S.L. Watson, None

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Schematic diagram showing the relative positions of each laser application on the cornea in the positive control group.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Graph demonstrating the incidence of ophthalmoscopically visible retinal lesions induced by different 810 nm laser powers, 125 mW (treatment group), 375 mW, 500 mW, 625 mW, and 750 mW, at timepoint 0 hour. R2 = 0.9401.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Representative fundoscopic images of (A) preprocedure baseline and (B) a visible laser induced retinal lesion, see arrow (750 mW, same eye, positive control group).
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Representative retinal histologic sections from pigmented Dutch Belted rabbits exposed to laser required to activate the adhesive (treatment group) at 0 hour (A), 3 hours (B), 3 days (C), and 7 days (D).
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Representative retinal histologic sections highlighting the transition zone (black arrows) between laser damaged retina and healthy retina from pigmented Dutch Belted rabbits from the positive control group at 0 hour (A), 3 hours (B), 3 days (C), and 7 days (D). The asterisk (*) in D indicates coagulative necrosis with disorganization of all neural retinal layers.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Tan J, Foster LJR, Watson SL. Application of a novel film sealant technology for penetrating corneal wounds: an ex-vivo study. Applied Sciences. 2020; 10(3193): 3193.
    1. Shahbazi J, Marcal H, Watson S, Wakefield D, Sarris M, Foster LJ.. Sutureless sealing of penetrating corneal wounds using a laser-activated thin film adhesive. Lasers Surg Med. 2011; 43(6): 490–498. - PubMed
    1. Foster LJR, Thomson K, Marçal H, Butt J, Watson SL, Wakefield D.. Chitosan-vancomysin composite biomaterial as a laser activated surgical adhesive with regional antimicrobial activity. Biomacromolecules. 2010; 11(12): 3563. - PubMed
    1. Tan J, Foster LJR, Lovicu FJ, Watson SL.. A novel thin film adhesive for sealing full thickness corneal incisions in rabbits. Manuscript accepted for publication at Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery. 2021. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Palanker D. Ophthalmic Laser Therapy: Mechanisms and Applications. 2017. Available at: https//web.stanford.edu/∼palanker/publications/Ophthalmic_Laser_Therapy.pdf.

Publication types