In short, "heavy water" is a soft instrument in ophthalmic surgery; "silicone oil" is a temporary filling in ophthalmic surgery

Further elaborated as follows

1. The so-called "heavy water" in ophthalmology is not heavy water (deuterated water) used for deceleration of nuclear reactors. It is essentially a type of purified perfluorocarbon liquid with a specific gravity greater than water, transparency, and a certain surface tension. biological toxicity.

Based on the above characteristics, the proper use of heavy water during surgery can help the operator to release the subretinal fluid smoothly, calm the detached retina, compress the hemostasis, and realize the floating of the lens nucleus and intraocular foreign body in the vitreous cavity to facilitate removal.

Compared with the sharp knives and scissors under the microscope, heavy water is known as a "soft instrument" because of its versatility, colorless and amorphous. When the nucleus of the lens falls into the vitreous cavity or expels hemorrhage, heavy water is the key to the success or failure of the operation.

It needs to be clear that the intraocular retention after heavy water surgery will cause a series of ocular complications, and it must be completely removed from the intraocular exchange at the end of the operation.

2. Silicone oil - polydimethylsiloxane

In fact, the most common medical application of silicone oil is cosmetic surgery.

In the field of ophthalmology, silicone oil is only used in complex retinal detachment and severe ocular trauma cases. The purpose is to apply continuous and effective top pressure to the retina that has been reset during surgery through temporary intraocular filling of silicone oil to prevent recurrent retinal detachment; severe ocular trauma Filling with silicone oil can maintain the stability of intraocular pressure to a certain extent and preserve the appearance of the eyeball.

Silicone oil cannot completely replace the function of the normal vitreous body. It may cause many serious ocular complications after filling the vitreous cavity for a long time. Generally, three months to six months after the first silicone oil filling operation, the re-examination found that the omentum was well reset and the intraocular pressure was normal. Re-surgical removal should be considered in a timely manner.