Improving visual recovery outcomes

[caption id="attachment_16369" align="alignleft" width="1024"] David Yorston[/caption] “Considering the excellent anatomical success rates of modern retinal detachment surgery, I believe that improving the functional recovery after macula-off detachments will be the focus of attention in the near future,” said Professor David Yorston, Tennet Institute of Ophthalmology, Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom. Prof Yorston presented his “Visual Recovery after Macula-Off Retinal Detachment” to delegates at the Club Jules Gonin Symposium at the 19th Annual EURETINA Congress in Paris yesterday morning. “Because anatomical success rates are so high, there is simply not much room for improvement, but if we can identify and tackle the factors that might improve visual acuity, we could make great strides,” he said. Previous studies had suggested that duration between macular detachment and surgical repair within the first week does not influence postoperative visual acuity. But are these results still applicable today? Prof Yorston revealed the results of his team’s analysis of the BEAVRS EURETINA Database, an online collaborative data audit tool. The results were clear. “It has become clear that the shorter the duration of the attachment, the better the final visual results,” he said. “The differences between 0-2 days, 3-4 days and 5-7 days are highly significant. Those first few days are critical.”

Tags: retinal detachment