[Cataract after silicone oil tamponade and its surgical treatment]

Twelve eyes of twelve cases of cataract after complicated retinal detachment surgery and silicone oil tamponade were treated in this report. Successful extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE) was performed on 10 of the 12 cases, no oil escape occurred in any of the operation and in one eye an intraocular lens was implanted. Intraoperatively, loss of large amount of silicone oil occurred and it was removed completely in ECCE in 2 cases. After the follow-up periods of 3 approximately 30 months (mean, ten months), ten cases with the intact posterior capsule and silicone oil in place had a good view of the fundus, their retinae were attached and visual acuities were recovered above the best levels after retinal detachment surgery. Two cases with silicone oil removal suffered from retinal re-detachment. The main points of the surgery were discussed, and the effective method of prevention from silicone oil escape and maintenance of the transparency of the posterior capsule after ECCE were proposed.