Outer Retinal Optical Coherence Tomography Changes Associated With Intraocular Silicone Oil Administration

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Retinal Surgery
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Silicone oil tamponade is used in retinal detachment repair.
• Optical coherence tomography (OCT) visualizes retinal structures.
• Potential vision-impairing complications of silicone oil require investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize OCT changes associated with silicone oil tamponade.
• To correlate these OCT findings with visual acuity (VA) outcomes.
• To evaluate the impact of silicone oil removal on OCT changes and VA.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective cohort study (2015-2023) of patients undergoing vitrectomy with silicone oil for retinal detachment.
• Analysis of OCT scans and visual acuity measurements before, during, and after silicone oil tamponade.
• Comparison of outcomes between macula-on and macula-off detachment groups.

Main Results:

• Outer retinal OCT changes were observed in patients with silicone oil.
• In macula-on cases, silicone oil removal significantly improved VA (P=.04) and resolved OCT changes in most patients.
• In macula-off cases, OCT changes resolved, but VA did not significantly improve after oil removal (P=.057).

Conclusions:

• Silicone oil tamponade can induce outer retinal OCT changes impacting vision.
• Over 90% of these OCT changes and associated vision loss resolved after silicone oil removal.
• Prompt silicone oil removal may enhance visual outcomes, particularly if the macula was not detached initially.