What is viscoelastic?

During cataract surgery, we make incisions into the front part of the eye. The front part of the eye is full of a watery liquid that allows it to keep its shape. When the incision is made, that watery liquid leaks out, and the front of the eye can’t keep its shape. If there is no shape to the front of the eye, then there is no room to work! That’s why we inject material into the eye to substitute for the watery liquid that won’t squirt out so easily. This material is called viscoelastic (because it exhibits both viscous and elastic characteristics) or, to be more formal for an eye surgical setting, an ophthalmic viscosurgical device.