Surgically Induced Focal Retinal Detachment Does Not Cause Detectable SD-OCT Retinal Changes in Normal Human Retina

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Retinal Surgery
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• Subretinal delivery of stem cells and gene therapy often requires induced focal retinal detachment (RD).
• The safety of this induced RD on surrounding retinal tissues is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of surgically induced focal RD on the normal retina surrounding submacular hemorrhages (SMH).
• To compare the anatomical changes in incidentally detached normal retina versus pathological RD.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective observational study of 7 eyes with monocular SMH undergoing surgical displacement.
• Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) used for pre- and postoperative retinal thickness measurements (IRT, ORT, FRT).
• Comparison of retinal thickness in SMH regions and surrounding normal retina.

Main Results:

• Visual acuity improved in 6/7 subjects post-surgery.
• No significant detectable changes in inner, outer, or full retinal thickness in the normal retina surrounding the SMH after induced RD.
• Full retinal thickness overlying SMH regions was significantly reduced after surgical displacement.

Conclusions:

• Surgically induced focal RD does not cause detectable adverse retinal changes in the adjacent normal retina.
• Induced RD for therapeutic delivery should be differentiated from pathological RD in terms of retinal impact.