Incidence of retinal detachment after fellow-performed primary pars plana vitrectomy

Background. Primary pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) is often performed by vitreoretinal fellows. We aimed to evaluate the incidence of retinal breaks and detachments (RD) after fellow-performed PPV. Methods. We reviewed 119 consecutive cases of standard 3-port primary PPVs on 115 patients at a teaching institution from 2003 to 2006. In all cases, the primary surgeon was a vitreoretinal fellow. Patients with previous RD were excluded. Cases were reviewed for postoperative retinal detachments, and all patients were followed for up to 1 year. Results. Intraoperative retinal breaks occurred in 5 of 119 eyes (4.2%). One break was associated with sclerotomy and 4 were not. Postoperative RD occurred in 8 of 119 eyes (6.7%). Two RDs were sclerotomy related, 5 were not, and 1 was of indeterminate origin. Conclusions. Incidence of retinal breaks and RD following primary PPV by vitreoretinal fellows is low and comparable to that of fellowship-trained surgeons.