Prophylactic cryotherapy of retinal breaks.

All 100 eyes treated with transconjunctival cryotherapy to seal peripheral retinal breaks had a final vision as good or better than when they were first seen. Three of the 100 eyes developed clinical retinal detachments subsequent to the initial cryotherapy, necessitating scleral buckling procedures; all 3 had a final vision of 6/6 in the involved eye. No other complications occurred. Indications for treating retinal breaks or for not treating, are presented. In general, all symptomatic retinal breaks and asymptomatic ones if in aphakic eyes, when crescentic or linear at the margin of lattice, or if horseshoe, are treated. Other instances in which asymptomatic retinal breaks are treated are the following: (1) eyes on long-term miotics: (2) cases in which a retinal detachment is present in the fellow eye: (3) the break(s) are in an only eye; (4) cataract extraction is being considered; (5) 4 diopters of myopia or greater are present; or (6) subretinal fluid of more than 1 but less than 2 disc diameters in size is noted. Other retinal breaks not associated with subclinical or clinical retinal detachments are placed under observation at periodic intervals.