Cystoid macular oedema following pneumatic retinopexy vs scleral buckling.

AIMS: To determine the incidence of angiographic cystoid macular oedema (CMO) following pneumatic retinopexy (PR) and scleral buckling (SB) in consecutive case series.

METHODS: Patients who had successful anatomical attachment following PR and SB were included in our study; 132 patients had PR and 121 patients had SB. We evaluated the demographic characteristics, visual acuity, lens status, macular status, and previous ocular history in all patients. CMO was evaluated by fluorescein angiography (FA) in a masked pattern, 6 and 12 weeks after surgery in all cases. We analysed the CMO incidence and its correlation with preoperative ocular status and visual outcome. Chi2 and Fisher's exact tests were used in statistical analysis.

RESULTS: CMO was present in 15 of 132 (11%) PR, and 35 of 121 (29%) SB patients at 6 weeks (P=0.0005); the oedema was persistent in eight of 132 (6%) PR and 21 of 121 (17%) SB patients at 12 weeks (P=0.0005). Eight of 106 (8%) phakic and seven of 26 (27%) pseudophakic patients developed CMO following PR (P=0.02). In the SB group, 26 of 72 (36%) patients who had preoperative macular detachment developed CMO (P=0.03). Visual improvement was limited in patients who developed angiographic CMO despite anatomical re-attachment of the retina.

CONCLUSIONS: CMO may occur following both PR and SB and deteriorate the visual outcome. Previous cataract surgery and macular detachment may increase the CMO rates following PR and SB, respectively.