Comparative study of chemical composition, molecular and rheological properties of Silicone Oil medical devices

Purpose: Silicone Oils (SilOil), considered biocompatible long-term intraocular tamponade, can cause serious complications, mainly related to emulsification. This phenomenon is influenced by their physical and chemical properties and, particularly, by the presence of "impurities" such as siloxane chains of low molecular weight (LMW components, LMWC) produced during SilOil synthesis process. Therefore, given the need of checking SilOil chemical composition, and their molecular and rheological properties, this chemical lab study aimed to evaluate the above mentioned findings in ten SilOil commercially available for ophthalmic surgery.