The leading cause of central vision loss in the developed world is from age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Although certain types of AMD can generally be managed with injections of anti-VEGF agents, the treatment is sometimes ineffective. The linked study examines how this type of treatment potentially can be improved by movement-driven or thermal-driven mixing. Both experimental PIV studies and computer simulations with FEATool Multiphysics were performed in order to better understand the fluid dynamics in the eye, and assist with developing better strategies for ocular injections and improving the quality of care for patients.
The results showed that mixing is significantly improved when a 5-10 degree temperature differential is applied. Moreover, the flow profile developed and became stabilized significantly faster in numerical simulations compared with experiments with consistent results. The numerical simulation method that was developed in the study could therefore potentially be used in place of experiments for future studies.
References
Huang J. Investigations of Different Methods to Promote Drug Mixing in the Eye, PhD Thesis, California University of Technology (Caltech), 2020, doi: 10.7907/741T-MN38.
Huang J. Thermal Effects on Fluid Mixing in the Eye, American Physical Society’s Division of Fluid Dynamics 72nd Annual Meeting, Nov. 23-26, 2019.