OPHTHALMIC VISCOSURGICAL DEVICES

Ophthalmic viscoelastic devices (OVDs) are recently used in cataract surgery and have expressivelyupgraded the safety and effectiveness of this surgical procedure. OVDs create and maintain anterior chamber depth and visibility, protecting the corneal endothelium and other intraocular tissues during surgery. The selection of the most adequate OVD is especially relevant when performing cataract surgery in challenging cases, such as in hard, mature cataracts, flat anterior chamber, pseudoexfoliation syndrome, intraoperative floppy iris syndrome, or glaucoma surgery. In such cases, OVD is crucial for facilitating the surgical procedure and the associated minimal complication rate. The use of a combination of OVDs (soft-shell technique and modifications), the use of blue-colored. OVDs, and the combination of sodium hyaluronate with lidocaine have also been described as useful tools in some of these challenging cases.