DOWNLOADS & OTHER RESOURCES:
- B-HEX Pupil Expander - Instructions for Use
- B-HEX 23 G Forceps - Instructions for Use
- B-HEX Pupil Expander: Tips & Tricks (PDF with video links)
- B-HEX Pearls
- Why doesn’t the B-HEX Pupil Expander have an Injector?
- How is B-HEX different from other Pupil Expanders?
- Pupil Expanders - Hexagon or Square?
- Papers & Publications
B-HEX® Pupil Expander:
The B-HEX® Pupil Expander is a globally patented and trademarked 3rd generation ‘Bhattacharjee ring’ which uses a radically different inventive concept. It is a uniplanar thin flexible hexagonal device with notches at the corners and flanges at the sides. Alternate flanges are tucked under the iris to engage the notches to the pupil margin and provide pupil expansion. The single use disposable 6.5 mm device provides a 5.5 mm expanded pupil which is adequate for phaco surgery and IOL implantation. It is preloaded in an innovative transparent housing with a handle which presents the sterile device at the incision. The surgeon effortlessly slides the device into the anterior chamber using the ‘B-HEX® 23 G Forceps’.
Unlike Other Devices:
- The easy, single-use, hair thin B-HEX (75 micron) can be inserted through a 1.5 mm incision & removed through a 1 mm side-port, which no pupil expander can match.
- Unlike other devices which snag the incision unless used with an injector, the uniplanar
B-HEX glides through the incisions as it is carried using the B-HEX forceps. - The device is machine manufactured and does not have a joint.
- It does not require the steps of loading and priming. The ergonomically designed housing carries the sterile device to the incision in a 'Deployment ready' state.
- Unlike other devices where an injector is used, the B-HEX is visible during its entire travel: in the housing, through the incision & into the eye.
- The hexagonal B-HEX has a much smaller circumcircle compared to other size matched square devices. This ensures least possibility of trauma to the Iris & angle structures.
- The 75 micron B-HEX is one tenth the thickness of other devices and allows a lot of room for movement of the Phaco probe and other instruments even in a shallow AC.
- Since the B-HEX is uniplanar and the pupil engaging notches are directly visible, it is the safest device when used in intraoperative miosis after capsulorhexis, as it has the least possibility of catching the capsulorhexis margin.
- On removal, the pupil returns to its pristine state, which again differentiates it from competition.
Why doesn’t the B-HEX Pupil Expander have an Injector? Download
It is heartening to note that all surgeons who have used the B-HEX Pupil Expander are convinced that an Injector is unnecessary and that other devices use an Injector only to circumvent inherent flaws in their design. Injectors neither improve the functionality nor enhance sterility of the pupil expansion device.
An Inventor always poses questions in an attempt to find better solutions.
Q1. Why existing pupil expanders could not be inserted through small incisions?
Existing devices had large biplanar scrolls/ pockets which snagged the slit corneal incision on their way in and out. It appeared fundamentally wrong to try and push this biplanar structure through a slit corneal incision – it would obviously snag the incision. This was resolved by inventing a planar/ uniplanar ‘B-HEX Pupil Expander’ which could effortlessly glide in and out of the eye through very small incisions. Please see detailed description and drawings below.
Q2. Why did existing pupil expanders use an Injector despite the fact that the Injector tube occupied precious incision space?
It was realized that the Injector had been provided only to circumvent the problem of snagging at the incision. Hence, a device that did not snag the incision would not require an injector.
Q3. Does the Injector improve the functionality of the pupil expansion device?
No, it does not.
When an Injector is used to deliver an IOL, it helps fold the large stiff IOL to negotiate it through a small incision. This is necessary because otherwise, significant force and additional maneuvers are required to accomplish this. But, Pupil expanders do not require such force or maneuvers to be folded/ deformed to negotiate through corneal incisions. They are resiliently flexible and can easily deform and regain shape as they pass through small incisions.
Since the flanges of the ‘B-HEX Pupil Expander’ are held and tucked with the ‘B-HEX 23 G forceps’, the control is at the site of action. This is in contrast to a device delivered with an injector where the control is more remote and away from the site of action.
Another advantage of not using an Injector system with an opaque metal tube is that the B-HEX is never obscured and is visible through its entire travel from the housing into the eye.
Q4. Does the Injector provide enhanced sterility?
The Injector does not provide enhanced sterility because the tube/ cartridge nozzle contacts the conjunctiva as it negotiates the incision. While the IOL or the pupil expander may not contact the incision or conjunctiva, the injector tube or cartridge nozzle does so when it enters the eye. So does the phaco sleeve and every other instrument that we use in ocular surgery.
How is B-HEX® different from other pupil expanders? Download
All other pupil expanders have scrolls, channels or pockets which make the pupil engaging part a thick biplanar structure. This is difficult to pass through a slit corneal incision and causes snagging. Hence all these devices require an Injector for delivery and removal. The B-HEX on the other hand has a thin profile and uniplanar design that allows it to glide through much smaller incisions without an Injector. The B-HEX® takes advantage of the fact that the Iris can be reversibly bent without harm.
Pupil Expanders - Is Hexagon better than Square? Download
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This is a self-learning group of persons interested in the B-HEX Pupil Expander. By sharing pearls and pitfalls we learn from and teach each other how we could use this innovative device better. Experienced users are readily available for hand-holding and guiding new users. Learning is a continuous process ...........
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