Cataract-related acute vitreomacular traction syndrome

To report the acute and transient (within 10 days) presentation of vitreomacular traction following routine cataract surgery.

This is a case series of 5 patients with no evidence of posterior vitreous detachment preoperatively who presented with acute vitreomacular traction following routine cataract surgery. All patients presented the first postoperative day with dramatically reduced visual acuity. The patients underwent optical coherence tomography and if necessary fundus fluorescein angiography. Images were suggestive of vitreomacular syndrome.

In all 5 cases, there was spontaneous resolution of the traction within 10 days. The latter was probably related to the development of posterior vitreous detachment due to the uncomplicated cataract surgery. In 2 cases there were significant retinal pigment epithelium changes and decreased retinal thickness following the resolution of the traction leaving permanent metamorphopsia and slightly decreased visual acuity.

Cataract-related acute vitreomacular traction is a rare phenomenon and not well-recognized; however, it resolves spontaneously within 10 days.