Journal article
Development of a surgical approach for a wide-view suprachoroidal retinal prosthesis: Evaluation of implantation trauma
J Villalobos, PJ Allen, MF McCombe, M Ulaganathan, E Zamir, DC Ng, RK Shepherd, CE Williams
Graefe S Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology | SPRINGER | Published : 2012
Abstract
Background Our research goal is to develop a safe, reproducible surgical approach for implantation of a wide-field retinal stimulating array. The aim of this study was to evaluate the pathological response to acute implantation of a functional prototype electrode array in the suprachoroidal space. Methods The surgical techniques to implant a 72 platinum electrode array fabricated on 8×13×0.4 mm polyimide and silicone substrate were developed in a pilot study in anesthetized cats. For the main study, nine eyes were implanted in vivo and unoperated eyes were used as controls. Surgery consisted of a temporal approach with a full-thickness scleral incision 5 mm posterior to the limbus. A suprach..
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Funding Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank Tom Landry and David Perry for assistance with data collection, Maria Clarke for assistance with histology and eye pathology, and Rebecca Argent for assistance with imaging. This work was performed at the Bionic Ear Institute at St. Vincent's Hospital, and the Department of Otolaryngology from the University of Melbourne at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. Funding was provided by the Ian Potter Foundation, the John T. Reid Charitable Trusts, and the Australian Research Council through its Special Research Initiative in Bionic Vision Science and Technology grant to Bionic Vision Australia (BVA). J. Villalobos is being supported by the University of Melbourne, Fundacion GCC and National ICT Australia. The Bionic Ear Institute acknowledges the support it receives from the Victorian Government through its Operational Infrastructure Support Program.