Macular vision following retinal detachment surgery

We studied 100 retinal detachment patients with macular involvement who had successful scleral buckling procedures using encircling fascia lata. Aphakic patients and patients with pre-existing ocular pathology in addition to the detachment were not excluded from the series. Follow-ups of one year or more (average 26.1 months) were available for 77 of the patients. Forty-four of these patients (56.5%) achieved acuities of 20/60 or better. The duration of the detachment was an important prognostic factor; one month was the critical period for the duration of the detachment. The existence of preoperative ocular pathology in addition to the detachment was also an important prognostic indicator. There was no significant difference in the visual acuities of phakic versus aphakic patients. Half of the patients studied with respect to refractive error became more myopic with an average change of -1.01 diopters.