Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment after YAG laser posterior capsulotomy

Twenty-five eyes in 24 patients with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) after YAG laser posterior capsulotomy were treated during 1984 and 1985. The average time from extracapsular cataract surgery to YAG capsulotomy was 15 months. The average interval from capsulotomy to RD was 6 months (median time, 3 1/2 months). In 8 of the 25 eyes, a risk factor for RD (i.e., high myopia, lattice degeneration, or a history of RD in the fellow eye) was present. All but one of the detachments was successfully repaired.