Jean-Francois Korobelnik, MD, says surgeons under-utilize a key surgical tool

Jean-Francois Korobelnik, MD, delivered the Gisbrert Richard Lecture at this year's Congress of the European Society of Retina Specialists (EURETINA). Prof. Korobelnik is affiliated with Hôpital Pellegrin and CHU de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France. He is also an editorial advisor for Modern Retina. His keynote was titled "Removal of intra-ocular foreign bodies: Why, when, how?"

In his lecture, Prof. Korobelnik emphasized the importance of immediate wound closure in the event of ocular trauma. He advocated for delivering antibiotics via intravitreal injections and using advanced vitrectomy machines wherever possible to maximize patient outcomes. He also championed an easy-to-use surgical tool that he believes is underutilized in trauma surgery: intraocular magnets, a key strategy for removing metallic foreign bodies.

"This magnet is really, really a nice tool to elevate the intraocular foreign body from the retina without grasping, without pushing," he said. "Most of the foreign bodies [encountered by surgeons] are metallic, and those magnets are very useful. I was surprised to see in the last few years that some surgeons are not aware of those magnets...I think it's a pity, because at the end, easier surgery is better for the patients."

Prof. Korobelnik also urged clinicians to counsel their patients ahead of surgery to manage expectations following ocular trauma. "It's very important to explain the prognosis," he warned. "Very often patients are young. They are working age. They expect that, with surgery, [their vision] will be back to what it was before the trauma. In some cases, that is the case. But in some other cases, it's more complicated, or not at all better."