What replaces the vitreous and vitreous humor after vitrectomy or AKA FOV? The answer is that your eye produces it’s own saline solution.
Vitreous humor – technical term for the natural saline which fills the eye. It is the watery or liquid part of the vitreous.
During Vitrectomy
The vitreous is mostly water, somewhere around 98-99% water, and during the vitrectomy, artificial saline is pumped into the eye as the vitreous/saline mixture is removed.
So the vitreous cavity is naturally filled with vitreous (mostly water) and replaced with all water after vitrectomy.
If you have seen the videos or are a careful reader, the standard vitrectomy system is a “3-Port” system. This means 3 “holes” are made into the eye, one for each hand and a third to connect a small tube which infuses saline into the eye.
After Vitrectomy
After the vitrectomy is completed, the artificial saline infused during the operation is then replaced by our natural saline over the next 24-48 hours. The natural saline is also known as “aqueous humor.”
Most of the intraocular fluid leaves the eye at the base of the cornea through a tissue called the trabecular meshwork. Though there are other mechanisms by which fluid can leave, the trabecular meshwork is responsible for the at least 90% of intraocular fluid drainage.
The ciliary body is the tissue which makes natural intraocular fluid or natural saline. The fluid is made in the posterior chamber (aka vitreous cavity) and flows forward to drain in the anterior chamber.
There is a natural balance between production and drainage to keep a “positive” pressure in the eye. Incidentally, if this resultant eye pressure is too high, we worry about the development of glaucoma.
Vitreous Does Not Return
Once removed, the vitreous does not grow back or regenerate. It is a mass of proteins made during our embryological development. Once we born – there is little or no use of the vitreous.
Removing floaters shouldn’t or can’t recur unless there is a secondary problem such as bleeding or inflammation.
In short, the vitreous is a vestigial tissue. Once born, it serves no great purpose. Once removed, it doesn’t “grow” back.