Intraoperative OCT-Assisted Subretinal Perfluorocarbon Liquid Removal in the DISCOVER Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To assess the role for intraoperative optical coherence tomography (iOCT) during subretinal perfluoro-n-octane (PFO) removal and evaluate it as an assistive technique during surgical maneuvers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: DISCOVER is a prospective study examining microscope-integrated iOCT systems in ophthalmic surgery. The authors report a technique utilizing iOCT guidance and feedback for surgical removal of chronic subretinal PFO. RESULTS: In this technique, real-time iOCT feedback successfully guided surgical maneuvers to facilitate removal of PFO. Due to the chronicity of the PFO, it was loculated and resistant to multiple maneuvers. Utilizing real-time feedback, additional maneuvers were attempted with feedback to the surgeon regarding the success of removal. Postoperatively, visual acuity improved with anatomic normalization. CONCLUSION: Microscope-integrated iOCT with real-time feedback provided important information to the surgeon that helped facilitate subretinal PFO removal and guided surgical maneuvers.