[Choice of technique in rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (author's transl)]

If not complicated by vitreous- or retinal traction the rhegmatogenous retinal detachment has an extraordinarily good chance to be healed surgically. The principle to safely seal the retinal hole by a circumscribed and controlled plombage from the outside of the eye - successfully developed as a surgical method by Custodis - appears now to be accepted everywhere. Nowadays the mayor modifications of this principle are widely used in retinal detachment surgery. The author outlines different clinical pictures patients may present with before surgery. He points to the surgical ways adequate to the given situation. The pros and cons of each approach are discussed. Generally spoken, the author prefers episcleral implants placed whether radially or circumferentially as the case may require. However, other techniques such as intrascleral implants are considered to have also their indications.