Technical Field

This invention relates to an implant carrying apparatus for minimizing the contact between the ocular implant and the iris surface and for eliminating the contact between the ocular implant and the iridocorneal angle and also the corneal endothelium.

Prior Art

Nowadays, a lot of people would like to have colored eyes for several reasons. For this purpose, options such as color contact lenses, intraocular implants and reduction of pigment intensity on the iris surface by means of laser can be used. Each product or method has its own advantages and disadvantages. Contact lenses lead to undesirable health conditions such as allergy, infection, and corneal problems. Also, the color change made by contact lenses is expressed by most people as artificial color which is not like natural eye color. Reduction of iris pigment density by laser has some disadvantages such as the process is relatively slow, the color obtained can not be fully predicted in advance, and this process is irreversible. In addition, there are some medical situations in which changing the visible iris color is used as a treatment. Examples include aniridia, iris coloboma, heterochromia, ocular albinism.

Implants for changing the eye color are placed inside the anterior chamber and on the natural iris in the eye. Since these implants are in full contact with the iris, they cause many complications. These complications include: intraocular pressure increase, glaucoma, corneal endothelial cell loss and associated corneal decompensation, cataract formation, uveitis, iris atrophy, iris deformities, development of damage to the trabecular meshwork, development of adhesion between iris-cornea and iris-lens. The reasons for these complications are i) the contact of the implant with the iris and the resulting friction, ii) the contact of the implant with corneal endothelium, and iii) intraocular inflammation caused by the implant.

Considering the patent documents known in the art, it appears that some protrusions engaging the iridocorneal angle are formed on the implant in order to hold the ocular implant on the iris. As an example, the patent document entitled "Ocular implant iris diaphragm" and numbered WO 2011/139394 A2 can be mentioned. In this document, auricles formed on the outer edges of the implant for the purpose of holding the implant in place by engaging the eye at the iridocorneal angle are described. The disadvantage of this product is that the implant is in full contact with the iris surface, as well as since the implant is engaged at the iridocorneal angle, it contacts the corneal endothelium cells above iridocorneal angle in a destructive way. Full contact with the iris surface and contact with corneal endothelial cells immediately above the corneal angle causes the patient to be exposed to all of the above-mentioned intraocular complications.

To overcome these complications, a brand new product is needed for minimizing the contact between the ocular implant and the iris surface and for eliminating the contact between the ocular implant and the iridocorneal angle and also the corneal endothelium. The purpose of the present invention is to provide this product and to remove the disadvantages mentioned above.

Summary of The Invention

This invention relates to an implant carrying apparatus for minimizing the contact between the ocular implant and the iris surface and for eliminating the contact between the ocular implant and the iridocorneal angle and also the corneal endothelium. Said implant carrying apparatus of the invention comprises an annular body, three fixing legs under the annular body, three connecting elements for connecting and fixing the implant carrying apparatus to the iris surface, three connecting parts for connecting the ocular implant to the implant carrying apparatus.

Description of Figures

Figure la is an upper perspective view of the implant carrying apparatus according to the present invention,

Figure lb is a top view of the implant carrying apparatus according to the present invention,

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the connecting part of the implant carrying apparatus,

Figure 3a shows an ocular implant which can be mounted on the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention, Figure 3b shows a bottom perspective view of an ocular implant and the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 4 shows a side view of an ocular implant and the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 5a shows a side view of an ocular implant installed on the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 5b shows a upper perspective view of an ocular implant installed on the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 6 shows a general structure of the human eye,

Figure 7a shows the place of the implantation of the ocular implant with the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 7b shows an enlarged view of the edge of the ocular implant with the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention,

Figure 8a is a schematic view of the implant carrying apparatus of the present invention on which some distances are defined,

Figure 8b is a schematic view of an ocular implant on which some distances are defined.

References

1 Implant carrying apparatus

2 Annular body

2a Gap

3 Fixing leg

4 Connecting element

5 Ring opening

6 Connecting part

7 Neck

8 Ocular implant

9 Hole

10 Anteri or chamb er

11 Cornea

12 Corneal endothelium 13 Iridocorneal angle

14 Iris

15 Lens

16 Region of implantation

17 dl distance

18 d2 distance

19 d3 distance

20 d4 distance

21 d5 distance

22 d6 distance

23 d7 distance

24 Inner diameter

25 External diameter

26 Distance between the hole and the inner diameter

27 Distance between the ocular implant and the iris

28 Distance between the ocular implant and the corneal endothelium

Detailed Description Of The Invention

With the present invention, an implant carrying apparatus (1) for minimizing the contact between the ocular implant (8) and the iris (14) surface and for eliminating the contact between the ocular implant (8) and the iridocorneal angle (13) and also the corneal endothelium (12) is provided. As seen in Figures 1 to 5, the implant carrying apparatus (1) according to the invention comprises: an annular body (2), three fixing legs (3) under the annular body (2), three connecting elements (4) for connecting and fixing the implant carrying apparatus (1) to the iris (14) surface, three connecting parts (6) for connecting the ocular implant (8) to the implant carrying apparatus (1).

Said annular body (2) has a gap (2a) for providing flexibility to facilitate the installation of the implant carrying apparatus (1). Also, said connecting element (4) has a form which is selected from the group consisting of full circle, half circle or C shape. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, said connecting elements (4) have a C ring shape with corners at right angles and a ring opening (5) for clamping.

Furthermore, said connecting part (6) is in the form of a knob which is inserted to a corresponding hole (9) located on the ocular implant (8). Also, said connecting part (6) which is in the form of a knob has a neck (7) for fitting to the hole (9) on the ocular implant (8).

Due to the medical safety requirements, said annular body (2) and all other parts are made of inert and non-toxic material. In addition, the material of said annular body (2) is selected from the group consisting of transparent material, semitransparent material or non transparent material.

The implant carrying apparatus (1) is designed to change visible iris color for cosmetic and medical reasons. An inert, non-toxic, foldable material is used as the production material. This implant carrier apparatus (1) is circular in shape and covers the front surface of the iris (14) except for the front side (pupil opening) of the intraocular lens (15).

The main function of the fixing legs (3) and the corresponding connecting elements (4) in the implant carrying apparatus (1) according to the present invention can be expressed as, to stabilize the main body, namely the annular body (2) and to centralize it and to hold the annular body (2) at a certain distance from the surface of the iris (14). The annular body (2) rests on the fixing legs (3) and the connecting elements (4) at the ends thereof.

With the present invention, it is intended to solve the technical problem by minimizing the ocular implant (8) - iris (14) contact, which is the main reason for the above-mentioned medical complications, and eliminating the ocular implant (8) - corneal endothelium (12) contact.

The connecting element (4) and the annular body (2) are always kept at a certain distance from the surface of the iris (14) and the contact of the iris (14) with the implant carrying apparatus (1) according to the present invention is limited to only the bottom surface of the three connecting elements (4). Also, the presence of the annular body (2) at a certain distance from the corneal limb prevents contact with the corneal endothelium (12). By preventing the pigment dispersion due to friction, both iris atrophy and obstruction of the trabecular meshwork are prevented. The space between the ocular implant (8) and the front surface of the iris (14) allows the aqueous humor produced in the posterior chamber to reach the trabecular meshwork without encountering an obstacle. Because the thickness of the implant carrying apparatus (1) is at a minimal level, the load on the iris (14) will also be at a tolerable level. Owing to the presence of the implant carrier apparatus (1), the ocular implant (8) remains at a certain distance from the iridocorneal angle (13), unlike the other available implants, and this inhibits the possible iridocorneal angle (13) damage. The annular body (2) can be made of inert, non-toxic material which is already colored or colored after production. It may be transparent, semi-transparent or non-transparent. The dye material used in the coloration of the annular body (2) will likewise have a non-toxic structure. The transparency or semi-transparency of the annular body (2) will allow the iris (14) tissue which is covered by the annular body (2) to be seen during the examination. In the case of transparency, it will allow for detailed examination of retinas. The connecting elements (4) in the form of rings will be transparent.

The connecting element (4) can be in the form of a complete circle, a half circle or a C- shape. In any case, the number of connecting elements (4) is 3 and they can be arranged evenly spaced or the distance between them can be variable. Since there are 3 connecting elements (4) instead of 2, stabilization will be strengthened and it will prevent decentralization. With the aid of the connecting element (4), it is also possible to limit the full dilation and thickening of the iris (14) and to avoid the contact of the ocular implant (8) with the iris (14). Even in the event that any connecting element (4) is disengaged, the other two connecting elements (4) can continue to centralize.

As seen on Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, the interested parts of the eye are anterior chamber (10), cornea (11), corneal endothelium (12), iridocorneal angle (13), iris (14), lens (15). Also it is possible to see the region of implantation (16) on Fig. 7a. In Fig. 7b, the distance (27) between the ocular implant (8) and the iris (14) and the distance (28) between the ocular implant (8) and the corneal endothelium (12) are seen.

The annular body (2) may have a curved structure and the horizontal cross-section may appear as a dome shape. This curved structure resembles the anatomic structure of the iris (14) and contributes to the annular body (2 ) to remain at a certain distance from the iris (14).

The coloring of the annular body (2) can be done in two ways. In the first technique, the base material is colored beforehand and then the annular body (2) can be produced from this colored material. In the second technique, the annular body (2) is made transparent and this transparent structure can be colored with non-toxic dyes. After this coloring process is performed, the colored surface may be coated with an additional layer, depending on whether the surface is permanent or not. Dimensions of a preferred embodiment of the implant carrying apparatus (1):

As seen in Fig. 8a and Fig. 8b, dimensions of a preferred embodiment of the implant carrying apparatus (1) are shown. Without limiting the scope of the patent protection, these dimensions are given below.

Dimensions of the implant carrying apparatus (1): dl distance (17) : 0.2-1.0 mm, d2 distance (18): 0.5-1.0 mm, d3 distance (19): 0.1-0.5 mm, d4 distance (20): 0.5-1.0 mm, d5 distance (21): 3.0-5.0 mm, d6 distance (22): 1.0-3.0 mm, d7 distance (23): 3.1-5.5 mm.

Dimensions of the representative ocular implant (8): inner diameter (24): 2.0-4.0 mm, external diameter (25): 6.0-13.0 mm, distance between the hole and the inner diameter (26): 1.0-3.0 mm.

By the design of the implant carrying apparatus (1) of the present invention, a distance (27) between the ocular implant (8) and the iris (14) and a distance (28) between the ocular implant (8) and the corneal endothelium (12) is created and thus the contact and friction is minimized.