Moorfields Eye Hospital in Dubai (Moorfields) has removed the silicone oil implant, a standard procedure in ophthalmology to treat retinal detachment, to save a patient’s eyesight. The incident can be summed up as follows.
Dut Jok Chalic Jok, a 40-year-old male patient from Sudan, had got silicon oil implanted on his left eye in a European hospital years ago as part of his treatment for a recurring retinal detachment. Usually, the silicone oil plants are removed within three to six months after implantation to avoid further complications.
However, the removal process was not done in this case. As a result, the original silicone oil injected into the patient’s eye had become emulsified and formed bubbles which not only lowered its effectiveness in helping to prevent retinal detachment but also led to a further total retinal detachment and a very high pressure in the eye. It subsequently led to the onset of glaucoma, which would ultimately cause total blindness.
The doctors in Moorfields Dubai quickly diagnosed the issue and removed the silica gel in a complicated surgical procedure.
Commenting on the patient case, Dr. Ammar Safar, Medical Director, Consultant Vitreoretinal Surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai, said: “The patient presented with a recurrent total retinal detachment and emulsification of the silicone oil which means that the one large bubble of oil had now broken down into literally millions of tiny bubbles, causing multiple complications. The surgery removed most of these tiny silicone bubbles from the eye (including under the retina) and we were able to reposition the retina successfully. The team was very pleased with the fast improvement in Dut Jok Chalic Jok’s vision and the normalization of his eye pressure again.”
Dut Jok Chalic Jok added: “I am very grateful to the Moorfields’ team led by Dr. Ammar for the quick intervention that saved the retina and the vision in my left eye. It was a challenge to find the expertise to treat the complications I faced and I was relieved to find that Moorfields had all the capabilities to perform the surgery required.”