Laser Prophylaxis in Patients with Stickler Syndrome

To evaluate the association among laser prophylaxis treatment, retinal detachment (RD), and visual acuity (VA) in patients with Stickler syndrome (SS).

Retrospective comparative case series.

Patients with SS.

Patients received extended vitreous base laser (EVBL), nonprotocol laser (NPL), or no laser prophylaxis treatment of any kind.

The 2 main outcome measures that were examined in these patients were rates of RD and VA.

In this study, 230 eyes of 115 patients were included. Fifty-nine patients were women (51%). The median age at the time of laser prophylaxis treatment was 9.5 years (interquartile range [IQR], 6-13 years), and the median age of patients with RD was 11 years (IQR, 7-18 years). Of the 230 eyes, 92 did not undergo any laser treatment, 9 received NPL treatment, and 129 received EVBL treatment. Of the 129 eyes that underwent EVBL treatment, 4 (3%) had RD, compared with 74 eyes (73%) that had RD and did not receive laser or NPL treatment (P < 0.001). Eyes that received EVBL treatment had approximately 8 lines better vision, on average, compared with those that did not receive laser or NPL treatment (-0.86 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution; 95% confidence interval,-1.1 to -0.64; P < 0.001).

Treatment with EVBL seems to reduce the rate of subsequent RD and is associated with better VA in patients with SS.