Fluid-structure interaction in phaco-emulsification based cataract surgery

Wang, Z., Wang, C., Zhao, F., Ren, F., Luo, X. and Tang, H. (2024) Fluid-structure interaction in phaco-emulsification based cataract surgery. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 267, 109022. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2024.109022)

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Abstract

Cataract scatters the light as it enters the eye, blurs images and severely interferes people's daily activities. The only effective therapy is cataract surgery, in which the clouded lens is phacoemulsified and removed. However, an aberrant iris distortion, namely intra-operative floppy iris syndrome (IFIS), is not uncommon in the phacoemulsification process, and it greatly degrades the surgical outcomes. Despite its great impact, the mechanism of IFIS has seldom been explored from the mechanics viewpoint. This study constitutes the first exploration into IFIS mechanism within the torsional-irrigation/aspiration (T-I/A) combined mode, from the perspective of fluid-structure coupling, employing our newly developed fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulation framework. The impacts of several factors, including probe type and position, irrigation and aspiration (I/A), iris stiffness and lens presence, are evaluated in two different torsional-irrigation/aspiration (T-I/A) combined configurations, corresponding to the scenarios of coaxial and bimanual I/A operations. Results reveal that by altering the probe's location in anterior chamber, three distinct modes of iris dynamics are recognized and defined as repulsion (RP), attraction (AT), and adhesion (AH) modes according to the relative iris-probe location. Among them, RP mode, where the iris is repelled by the probe, is preferred to ensure the safety of the iris. Furthermore, IFIS could be alleviated by stiffening iris, reducing I/A strength and choosing coaxial I/A device. These interventions result in the contraction of the damaging AH zone towards the iris root, occurring at approximately one-fourth (coaxial case), one-fifth (coaxial case), and one-fourth of the iris length, achieved by quadrupling iris stiffness, ceasing I/A flow, and utilizing coaxial I/A device, respectively. However, the risk of IFIS is only marginally impacted by the lens presence. Our findings gain a deeper insight into the iris dynamics in T-I/A mode from fluid-iris interaction viewpoint, which may provide valuable guidance for the surgical protocol operation.

Item Type:Articles
Keywords:Cataract, phacoemulsification, intra-operative floppy iris syndrome, fluid-structure interaction, irrigation/aspiration.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Luo, Professor Xiaoyu
Creator Roles:
Luo, X.Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing
Authors: Wang, Z., Wang, C., Zhao, F., Ren, F., Luo, X., and Tang, H.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Mathematics and Statistics > Mathematics
Journal Name:International Journal of Mechanical Sciences
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:0020-7403
ISSN (Online):1879-2162
Published Online:07 January 2024

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
303232EPSRC Centre for Multiscale soft tissue mechanics with MIT and POLIMI (SofTMech-MP)Xiaoyu LuoEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/S030875/1M&S - Mathematics
303231A whole-heart model of multiscale soft tissue mechanics and fluid structureinteraction for clinical applications (Whole-Heart-FSI)Xiaoyu LuoEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/S020950/1M&S - Mathematics