Visualization and a smaller package

Ocular inflammation is a ubiquitous symptom that could have any number of causes, and improved visualization within the eye is often imperative to correct diagnosis. I was recently referred a patient diagnosed with pseudoexfoliation syndrome and had undergone cataract surgery five years previously. The patient had undergone multiple vitrectomy surgeries for the chronic inflammation, and a wide-angle viewing system and scleral depression at the time of the earlier vitrectomies did not reveal an aetiology. Intraocular lymphoma was suspected and the patient was referred to me to undergo an endoscopic vitrectomy.

This case could be compared to severe endophthalmitis where the anterior segment view is compromised. Without an endoscope the physician would have to remove infected material almost blindly, resulting in the debulking of relatively little of the toxic infectious and/or inflammatory debris. While these are eyes with low visual potential, using the endoscope enables the physician to achieve a far greater removal of the damaging material, and increases the likelihood of saving the eye and preserving at least some vision.