Do standard procedures in squint surgery influence the blood-aqueous barrier?

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Surgery on the rectus muscles may interfere with anterior segment perfusion. This study investigates the influence of combined rectus muscle surgery on the blood-aqueous barrier in children. Namely, the influences of tucking and resection procedures were compared. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Laser flare measurements for tyndallometry were performed preoperatively and postoperatively in 25 children. Fifteen of the children had undergone a combination of a rectus recession and tucking; 10 had undergone a combined recession-resection procedure. RESULTS: The mean preoperative flare value was 4.1 photon counts/ms versus 3.7 photon counts/ms postoperatively in the eyes that had undergone surgery. Statistical evaluation showed that the postoperative changes were insignificant. No significant difference was found between the two surgical techniques (tucking vs resection) regarding the preoperative versus postoperative flare value change (level of statistical significance .05). CONCLUSION: Combined squint surgery, either recession-tucking or recession-resection, was not shown to influence the blood-aqueous barrier.