Abstract

Aims: To compare anatomical and functional outcomes for 546 phakic and pseudophakic primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachments (RDs) treated by pars plana vitrectomy or scleral buckling.

Methods: Prospective, non-randomised, interventional study in 15 centres in Spain and Portugal, with data from RDs consecutively treated from January 2005 to May 2007. Cases with preoperative proliferative vitreoretinopathy grade C-1 or higher and perforating trauma were excluded. Minimum follow-up was 3 months. Twenty-seven pre-, intra- and post-surgical variables for each patient were analysed. Multivariate analysis was carried out by logistic regression analysis with stepwise selection of variables.

Results: Data from 546 patients were analysed. Global anatomical success was 94.7%. Logistic regression analysis showed that only the development of postoperative proliferative vitreoretinopathy was associated with a poor anatomical outcome. The poorest functional results were associated with macular involvement, extension of RD, previous RD surgery, time of evolution of RD, and age of patient. Hierarchical log-linear analysis showed no effect of the lens status (phakic versus pseudophakic) on the functional results. However, pars plana vitrectomy was most often performed in pseudophakic eyes and resulted in a worse final visual acuity (p<0.001).

Conclusions: No differences in anatomical success between phakic and pseudophakic eyes were found in this series. Pars plana vitrectomy was most often performed in pseudophakic eyes and had a greater probability of a worse final visual acuity than scleral buckling.