Melissa X Kuo1, Maria Sarris, Minas T Coroneo. 1. *Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Kensington, New South Wales, Australia; and †Department of Ophthalmology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Conjunctival autografting is a technically difficult step of pterygium surgery, and novice surgeons have limited opportunities to develop and practice their surgical skills. The porcine eye model closely approximates the human eye in tissue consistency when preparing conjunctival and limbal-conjunctival grafts. This study assessed the efficacy of a cadaveric porcine model in teaching and improving a novice's skills of conjunctival autograft creation. METHODS: A novice was taught to prepare 5 × 5 mm conjunctival grafts and created 58 grafts on fresh porcine eyes. The conjunctival graft thickness was measured using standard histological techniques. RESULTS: Between grafts 1-10 and grafts 49-58, there was a statistically significant difference in both thickness (P < 0.0001; mean thickness, 133 ± 27 and 87 ± 23 μm, respectively) and time of creation (P = 0.037; median time, 191 and 126 seconds, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The cadaveric porcine model may be a useful method for teaching this important technique to novice surgeons.
PURPOSE: Conjunctival autografting is a technically difficult step of pterygium surgery, and novice surgeons have limited opportunities to develop and practice their surgical skills. The porcine eye model closely approximates the human eye in tissue consistency when preparing conjunctival and limbal-conjunctival grafts. This study assessed the efficacy of a cadaveric porcine model in teaching and improving a novice's skills of conjunctival autograft creation. METHODS: A novice was taught to prepare 5 × 5 mm conjunctival grafts and created 58 grafts on fresh porcine eyes. The conjunctival graft thickness was measured using standard histological techniques. RESULTS: Between grafts 1-10 and grafts 49-58, there was a statistically significant difference in both thickness (P < 0.0001; mean thickness, 133 ± 27 and 87 ± 23 μm, respectively) and time of creation (P = 0.037; median time, 191 and 126 seconds, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The cadaveric porcine model may be a useful method for teaching this important technique to novice surgeons.
Authors: Alberto Ofenhejm Gotfryd; Fábio Chaud de Paula; Marcel Lobato Sauma; Alexandre Sadao Iutaka; Luciano Miller Reis Rodrigues; Guilherme Pereira Correa Meyer; Marcelo Passos Teivelis; Arthur Werner Poetscher; David Del Curto; Davi Wen Wei Kang; Luciana Cintra; Guilherme Buzon Gregores; Mario Lenza; Mario Ferretti Journal: Einstein (Sao Paulo) Date: 2022-02-16