title: [Fiberless miniature chandelier LED endoilluminator for pars plana vitrectomy].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Currently available chandelier endoilluminators for pars plana vitrectomy consist of conventional optical fibers coupled to a light source. The light probes of these fibers now provide wide emittance angles but it is still often not possible to illuminate the whole intraocular space via just one incision. Therefore, several light probes or additional handheld endoilluminators have to be used simultaneously or the lights have to be repositioned during surgery.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The presented prototype of a fiberless chandelier light-emitting diode (LED) endoilluminator aims at illuminating the whole intraocular space with just one incision while reducing the risk of harming the retina.
  
  
  METHODS
  The light source is a white LED with a conical tip that allows stable fixation within an incision. The physical properties of these LEDs were determined and used for calculating the relevant irradiance to assess the risk of causing harm to the eye. The illumination of the intraocular space was investigated using porcine eyes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The illumination of porcine eyes with the modified LEDs was bright and homogeneous. Measurements and subsequent calculations proved that the expected thermal load and photochemical hazard were very low for human eyes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The hitherto existing experimental results on porcine eyes and the theoretical considerations on human eyes were found to be positive; therefore, it is expected that this new fiberless chandelier LED endoilluminator will prove to be advantageous for human patients. It promises a reduced number of incisions with a simplified handling and need to add handheld light sources only if minimal intensity oblique illumination is helpful together with the chandelier illumination. This contributes to a significant reduction of phototoxicity risks and additionally there is a chance for a cost reduction because expensive xenon or mercury lamps are no longer necessary. These expectations have to be verified by further studies on human eyes.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Medizintechnik und Mechatronik, Hochschule Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 55, 89081, Ulm, Deutschland.
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Kölbl
authors.affiliation: Alamedics GmbH & Co. KG, Dornstadt, Deutschland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lindner
authors.affiliation: Alamedics GmbH & Co. KG, Dornstadt, Deutschland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lingenfelder
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Augenheilkunde, Klinikum der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt, Deutschland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Deuchler
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Augenheilkunde, Klinikum der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt, Deutschland.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Augenheilkunde, Klinikum der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt, Deutschland.
authors.forename: F H J
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Koch
authors.affiliation: Institut für Medizintechnik und Mechatronik, Hochschule Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 55, 89081, Ulm, Deutschland. hessling@hs-ulm.de.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heßling
mesh_terms: D011211:Electric Power Supplies; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D008029:Lighting / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008904:Miniaturization; D012666:Semiconductors; D014821:Vitrectomy / Q000295:instrumentation*
keywords: Light conductor; Light probe; Phototoxicity; Porcine eyes; Retina