Scientists have developed a “glowing” gel that improves the quality of eye surgery

Scientists have developed a “glowing” gel that improves the quality of eye surgery

Scientists at Johns Hopkins University have developed a new color-changing hydrogel. This development could reduce complications after cataract surgery, one of the world’s most common procedures.

During cataract surgery, doctors remove the clouded lens and replace it with an artificial lens. During this process, a clear hydrogel is injected into the eye to inflate the eye and protect the cornea. However, incomplete removal of this gel can lead to increased eye pressure, pain, and even long-term vision loss. Erick Rocher and Allen Eghrari, researchers at the Wilmer Eye Institute, have created a clear gel that turns fluorescent green when exposed to blue light, allowing surgeons to monitor its complete removal after surgery. According to the researchers, this innovation could improve the safety and effectiveness of cataract surgery and other eye procedures.

The results of this work were published on the cover of the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery. Erick Rocher and Allen Eghrari have also filed a provisional patent application for this invention.

“Because the gel has to be transparent for the surgeon to work, it’s very easy to remove it incompletely,” says Rocher, the paper’s first author.

Now, when completing the operation, surgeons can be absolutely sure that all the gel has been removed.

The new gel not only contains fluorescein and hyaluronic acid, but also chemically binds the fluorescent dye to the polymer that forms the gel. Under normal lighting during surgery, the gel appears transparent, but once the surgery is complete and the surgeon switches to blue light, the gel glows green, allowing surgeons to see even the smallest traces of gel residue. The latest digital microscopes can even illuminate the gel without requiring additional blue light.

“In addition to more complete gel removal, an important plus is that we know each component is safe for the eye and is already in clinical use,” says Eghrari. – In addition, the chemical reaction that gives the gel its visibility does not significantly change its viscosity. Therefore, we believe this gel is easy to incorporate: it feels very similar to the gels that surgeons are familiar with.”

Although the gel has shown efficacy in porcine models, researchers have yet to evaluate its efficacy and safety in human trials. The team faces two key challenges: scaling up production of the gel for clinical use and determining the optimal dye concentrations.