Photo Credit: Yogenyogeny

The following is a summary of “Impact of duration of silicone oil tamponade on foveal and parafoveal thickness in rhegmatogenous retinal detachment: a retrospective cohort study,” published in the April 2024 issue of Ophthalmology by Ewais et al.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study investigating how long silicone oil tamponade affects the thickness of the central and surrounding regions of the macula in eyes with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment.

They involved 64 eyes with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment in one eye, which underwent pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with silicone oil injection (January 2019 and December 2021) at Kasr Alainy Hospital. Patients were split into 2 groups. Group A underwent early silicone oil removal (SOR) after 3–4 months, while Group B had late removal after 6–8 months. Changes in central foveal thickness (CFT) and parafoveal thickness (PFT) from baseline were compared between the two groups before silicone oil removal and after removal. Changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and the relative risk (RR) of severe thinning were analyzed.

The results showed 64 eyes, with 36 in group A and 28 in group B. The mean CFT in group A changed insignificantly from 253±52 μm to 252±48 μm after SOR, while in group B, it changed significantly from 211±52 μm to 202±46 μm. The mean PFT in Group A decreased insignificantly from 299±39 μm to 297±40 μm, while in Group B, it decreased significantly from 284±46 μm to 273±44 μm. The improvement lines of BCVA were 4.11±1.88 in group A and 2.00±1.24 in group B. The RR of severe foveal thinning after SOR was 14.3, and severe parafoveal thinning was 15.43 in group B compared to group A. The CFT and PFT decreased significantly in both groups after SOR, with a more significant decrease in Group B. The improvement lines of BCVA were also higher in group A than in group B. The RR of severe foveal and parafoveal thinning was significantly higher in group B compared to group A after SOR.

Investigators concluded that a longer duration of silicone oil tamponade was associated with an increased risk of severe thinning in the central and surrounding areas of the macula after removal.

Source: link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10792-024-03096-8