SURGICAL MANAGEMENT OF MACULAR PUCKER AFTER RETINAL REATTACHMENT SURGERY

Vitrectomy techniques were used to remove epiretinal membranes that caused reduced visual acuity in 13 consecutive [human] eyes with macular pucker after otherwise successful retinal reattachment surgery. A technically successful result with visual improvement was achieved in each case. An iatrogenic retinal tear (successfully repaired) occurred in 1 eye and recurrent retinal detachment requiring an additional operation occurred postoperatively in 2 eyes. Despite such risks and that the best postoperative visual acuity achieved was 6/9 (20/30), the use of vitrectomy methods in removal of epiretinal membranes in selected cases of macular pucker can provide significant improvement in vision.