The earlier part of Week 3 (the first half of Week 3) mainly consisted of further data analysis of OCT slit scans on Microsoft Excel. On Thursday and Friday, however, I did get to do some more exciting procedures. In addition to what I had learned previously, I also learned how to conduct an actual corneal cross-linking procedure.
Before cross-linking however, I had to first scan the ex vivo pig's cornea with an OCT slit scanning machine since the main purpose of this entire process was to see if there were any observable differences between the pre-op and post-op pig corneas. After taking an initial OCT slit scan, the next step was to scan the cornea using ultrasound pachymetry. Then, we began the cross-linking process.
Cross-linking is mainly composed of two steps: the introduction of riboflavin (which we made right here in the lab) into the cornea, and the exposure of the riboflavin-soaked cornea to ultraviolet light. The main purpose of cross-linking is to condense the cornea so that any irregularities in curvature, shape, etc. can be treated. The cross-linking procedure began with simply leaving the entire pig eyeball in a small, shallow pool of riboflavin, just enough to completely cover the entire surface area of the cornea. The eye is left there for 30 minutes before being taken out and put under the ultraviolet light. Once exposure to the UV begins, drops of riboflavin must be administered to the cornea via syringe every 3 minutes for 30 minutes. After the passing of those 30 minutes, the cornea was washed with saline and scanned once more using both the OCT machine and ultrasound.
While the cornea did undergo various changes, no significant changes were observable. This may be due to the fact that the pig eyes were already rather dated. After an organism (pigs, humans, rabbits, etc) dies, the freshness of its eyes have approximately a little less than a day or so before they start to go bad. Because these corneas weren't the absolute freshest possible, our results may have been affected. Additionally, because pig corneas are thicker and therefore more resistant to a procedure such as cross-linking to begin with, pig corneas are not necessarily the best type of cornea to use. No matter, though, since a main purpose of this was to practice before doing it all over again next week using fresher, better corneas.
Soaking the cornea in the riboflavin while watching the 30-minute timer:
Scanning the cornea using the OCT slit scan machine:
Using a piece of paper to ensure that the ultraviolet rays were as focused as possible:
Cross-linking is mainly composed of two steps: the introduction of riboflavin (which we made right here in the lab) into the cornea, and the exposure of the riboflavin-soaked cornea to ultraviolet light. The main purpose of cross-linking is to condense the cornea so that any irregularities in curvature, shape, etc. can be treated. The cross-linking procedure began with simply leaving the entire pig eyeball in a small, shallow pool of riboflavin, just enough to completely cover the entire surface area of the cornea. The eye is left there for 30 minutes before being taken out and put under the ultraviolet light. Once exposure to the UV begins, drops of riboflavin must be administered to the cornea via syringe every 3 minutes for 30 minutes. After the passing of those 30 minutes, the cornea was washed with saline and scanned once more using both the OCT machine and ultrasound.
While the cornea did undergo various changes, no significant changes were observable. This may be due to the fact that the pig eyes were already rather dated. After an organism (pigs, humans, rabbits, etc) dies, the freshness of its eyes have approximately a little less than a day or so before they start to go bad. Because these corneas weren't the absolute freshest possible, our results may have been affected. Additionally, because pig corneas are thicker and therefore more resistant to a procedure such as cross-linking to begin with, pig corneas are not necessarily the best type of cornea to use. No matter, though, since a main purpose of this was to practice before doing it all over again next week using fresher, better corneas.
Soaking the cornea in the riboflavin while watching the 30-minute timer:
Scanning the cornea using the OCT slit scan machine:
Using a piece of paper to ensure that the ultraviolet rays were as focused as possible:
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