Effect of the Honan intraocular pressure reducer on intraocular pressure increase following intravitreal injection using the tunneled scleral technique

Objective: To determine the effect of the Honan intraocular pressure reducer (HIPR) on the rise in intraocular pressure (IOP) after an intravitreal injection using a tunneled scleral incision. Design: This was a prospective, comparative, controlled, non-randomized clinical study. Methods: Sixty eyes of 60 patients who received intravitreal injections with the tunneled scleral technique were allocated into two groups, one with and one without application of the HIPR. The pre-operative IOP both before and after application of the HIPR, and the IOP immediately postoperative, and at 3 and 10 min postoperatively were evaluated. The vitreous reflux was estimated by measuring the large diameter of the sub-conjunctival bleb formed after intravitreal injection. Results: The pre-operative IOP in the HIPR group was significantly lower than that in the non-HIPR group following application of the HIPR. The immediate postoperative IOP was significantly lower in the HIPR group than in the non-HIPR group. The IOP at 10 min postoperatively was lower in the HIPR group than in the non-HIPR group. There was no difference in the amount of vitreous reflux between the HIPR and the non-HIPR groups. Conclusion: The use of the HIPR reduces the IOP after an intravitreal injection using the tunneled scleral technique. However, the HIPR does not appear to affect a reduction in the vitreous reflux.