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Potential contamination of the G-probe used for transscleral cyclodiode
Atul Bansal1, Uthaya S Ramanathan
1Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre, City Hospital, Birmingham, UK. bansalatul@yahoo.com
Aim:
To present a case where we noted occult contamination of the G-probe used for transscleral cyclodiode and to critically analyze the techniques used for making a G-probe suitable for repeated use.
Materials And Methods:
Close microscopic examination of the G-probes used once for transscleral cyclodiode was done and a critical review of the literature on practice of reuse of the G-probe and the techniques used to "cleanse" the probe before reuse was performed.
Results:
We noticed microscopic contamination of the G-probe by the tear film fluid in all the probes examined by us. The review of literature indicates that repeated use of the G-probe is not uncommon. The types of techniques used for making it suitable for repeated use indicate that it is not universally recognized that the lumen of the G-probe can accumulate fluid during the procedure, which makes it potentially hazardous when used for other patients.
Conclusions:
In our opinion the G-probe should not be reused as inadequately reprocessed G-probe can lead to risk of nosocomial infections, serious iatrogenic complications, and medico-legal problems.
