B-HEX pupil expander: Pupil expansion redefined.

ABSTRACT

The B-HEX® Pupil Expander (Med Invent Devices) is a disposable 6.5 mm flexible hexagonal device with notches at corners and flanges at sides. Alternate flanges with positioning holes are tucked under the iris to engage the notches to the margin of the pupil to provide a 5.5 mm expanded pupil. Unlike devices with scrolls or pockets which require an injector to avoid snagging the incision, the preloaded B-HEX is inserted and removed through a 1 mm or larger incision using a manipulator or 23-gauge micro-forceps. The thin profile and uniplanar design allow unhindered instrument movement during phacoemulsification, cortical cleaning, and intraocular lens implantation. The B-HEX is safely used even after capsulorhexis since the thin uniplanar notches are directly visualized to avoid the capsule margin. It is useful in coaxial phacoemulsification, coaxial sub 2.00 mm micro incision cataract surgery (MICS), biaxial 1.5 mm MICS, femtosecond laser assisted cataract surgery (FLACS), small pupil pars plana vitrectomy, and shallow anterior chamber eyes.