This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Grisanti, S Articles by Bartz-Schmidt, K U Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Grisanti, S Articles by Bartz-Schmidt, K U

Histopathological analysis in experimental macular surgery with trypan blue

¹ Department of Ophthalmology I, Eberhard-Karls University Tuebingen, Germany
² Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University, Boston, MA, USA
³ Department of Ophthalmology, University of Wroclaw, Poland

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Assistant professor S Grisanti
Department of Ophthalmology I, Eberhard-Karls University of Tuebingen, Schleichstrasse 12–15, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany; salvatore.grisanti{at}med.uni-tuebingen.de

ABSTRACT
Aim: To analyse the effect of trypan blue on the retina in an experimental setting of macular surgery.

Methods: Porcine eyes were used within 3 hours after death. The eyes were hemisected and the vitreous removed. Trypan blue (0.15%) was applied over the trephined posterior pole, whereas the rest of the eye cup was filled with a balanced salt solution (BSS). The dye and the BSS were removed after 1 minute and the complete eye cup irrigated and filled with fresh BSS. Both the treated and untreated retinas were illuminated with a standard surgical light pipe and source at maximum power for 10 minutes. Both the trypan blue exposed retina and the non-treated surrounding retina were processed for histology.

Results: Exposure of the retina to trypan blue for 1 minute, followed by illumination caused no histologically detectable damage compared to the controls. No microarchitectural disorganisation, cellular disruption, or affection of the vitreoretinal interface was detected.

Conclusions: These findings indicate that a 1 minute exposure of trypan blue followed by illumination does not cause an acute morphologically detectable toxic effect on the porcine retina.

Abbreviations: BSS, balanced salt solution; ERM, epiretinal membrane; ILM, internal limiting membrane

Keywords: trypan blue; vital dye staining; macular surgery; internal limiting membrane; epiretinal membranes