Montreal hospital gets new eye surgery equipment

Ophthalmologists at the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital are excited about a new kind of microscope that they have been using for just a few weeks now.

The new telescope allows surgeons, during surgery, to view the eye in a cross section.

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“With a regular microscope, you would look at something straight on and this gives you a side profile,” explains Dr. Julia Talajic, an ophthalmologist at the hospital.

Ophthalmology clinic coordinator Dr. Éric Fortin described the new equipment is “all optical.”

“So it’s very safe,” he said.

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Talajic said there are several advantages to using the tool.

“We’re better able to visualize the anatomy of the cornea, and know how far we’ve gotten with our dissection,” she tells Global News.

She can make sure the dissection doesn’t go too deep and they don’t need to cut more than what is absolutely essential.

“Instead of resecting the entire thickness of the cornea, we only take away the sick parts of the cornea and we leave the healthy parts in place,” Talajic said.

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1:39 Montreal hospital gets new eye surgery equipment

So there is much less risk of complications, like a rejection of the implant. Other kinds of complications are also lowered like the risk of glaucoma and cataract, because there’s less anti-rejection medication being used.

The microscope can also be used for retinal and glaucoma surgeries.

Hospital officials say it’s the first time that this kind of microscope has been used in Canada, though similar ones have been in use in the US and Europe. They expect to use the new equipment on about 2,000 patients per year.