BETA-tricalcium Phosphate Granules as an Alternative Material for Ocular Implantation

Background: some types of implants used for orbital implantationhave side effects and complications. in this study wehave evaluated beta-tricalcium phosphate (j3-tcp: chronos)granules as an orbital implant.methods: eighteen rabbits randomly allocated to four groups.right eye enucleation performed in groups i to iii followed byfilling with autologous bone particles (n=5), a mixture ofautologous bone particles and pure j3-tcp granules (n=5), amixture of autologous bone marrow and pure 13-tcp granules(n=5). right eye evisceration was done in group iv (n=3), andthen filled with one of the aforementioned materials used ingroups i, ii and iii. after 12 weeks, exenterated contents werecompared by determining the volumes of the globes, area densitometryusing dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry.results: there was no significant difference between the volumesof enucleated globes before (groups i: 2.6(plus-minus)o.39, ii:2.6(plus-minus)o.12 and iii: 2.5(plus-minus)o.3 (ml) and after surgery; (groups i:2.5(plus-minus)oa, ii: 2.50(plus-minus)o.2 and iii: 2a(plus-minus)o.3). there was also no significantdifferences among the densities of exenterated contentsof all groups; (i: 175(plus-minus)3, ii: 165(plus-minus)1 and iii: 174(plus-minus)3mg/cm), in all enucleated groups, histopathologic evaluationsshowed remarkable vascularization and fibrous ingrowthwhich were remarkable in eviscerated group. no significantcomplication was observed.conclusion: j3-tcp granules offer good cosmetic results with lowrisk of infection and extrusion. however, further studies are requiredbefore they can be used in human as a new orbital implant.