Sir,

Intravitreal injection is an increasingly employed option in the management of posterior segment disease. Approval of anti-VEGF agents for the treatment of exudative age-related macular degeneration has led to preprepared and single-use surgical packs being provided by the manufacturers. A 3.5-mm/4-mm caliper, facilitating the needle introduction through the pars plana in pseudophakic and phakic patients respectively, is also included (Figure 1). Excision of non-melanoma skin cancers with 4-mm margins has been well described with favourable results.1 We have chosen to use the 4-mm end of the calliper to mark the margins for excision of BCC and low-risk SCC, as we normally would do with a standard adjustable caliper, thus saving a new instrument from being opened, putting through sterilisation procedures and the cost.

Figure 1
figure 1

4 mm/3.5 mm calliper supplied with intravitreal injection pack.

Full size image

Cleaning of non-surgical instruments using a 70% isopropyl alcohol swab has previously been shown to be sufficient to prevent the spread of iatrogenic infectious disease, and this technique has made the calliper reuseable.2