Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 16, 2026
The Polyvinyl Alcohol Sponge Model Implantation
Published on: April 18, 2012
Persistence of indentation with bioabsorbable poly-L/D-lactide versus silicone sponge scleral buckling implants
Satu M Länsman1, Ari I Karttunen, Heli K Hirvelä
1Department of Ophthalmology, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu, Finland. satu.lansman@oulu.fi
Purpose:
To measure the amount and duration of indentation depth achieved with biodegradable poly-L/D-lactide 96/4 (PLA96) and silicone sponge implants.
Methods:
Thirty rabbits underwent a scleral buckling procedure. A PLA96 buckling implant was used in 15 rabbits and a silicone sponge buckling implant was in 15 rabbits. A circumferential scleral buckling implant was sutured episclerally on the left eye of each rabbit, just temporal to the superior rectus muscle and 7 mm posterior to the limbus. Computed tomography was performed at 1 week, 3 months, and 5 months after surgery.
Results:
The PLA96 buckling implant (implant diameter, 3-3.5 mm) used in this study created lower indentation than the silicone sponge implant (implant diameter, 4 mm). The indentation created by the PLA96 implant decreased over time compared with that created by the silicone implant. There were no complications related to either kind of implant.
Conclusion:
Both the silicone sponge implant and the PLA96 implant caused indentation that decreased in a comparable manner over the follow-up period (5 months).
