Limited retinal detachment. A retrospective analysis of treatment with transconjunctival retinocryopexy.

Two hundred forty-one eyes with a "limited retinal detachment" were treated between 1967 and 1983 by transconjunctival retinocryopexy without scleral buckling. Follow-up ranged from 6 months to 10 years (mean, of 34 months). Anatomic reattachment was accomplished with retinocryopexy alone in 95% (228 eyes) of cases. Thirteen eyes (5%) were anatomic failures, but 12 of these were subsequently reattached with additional surgery. Risk factors for anatomic failure included multiple breaks, vitreous hemorrhage, and breaks with a rolled posterior edge. Visual results indicated that 229 eyes (95%) had stable or improved vision, while 12 eyes (5%) lost two or more Snellen lines. Causes for visual deterioration included premacular fibroplasia, proliferative vitreoretinopathy, and preexisting ocular pathology. Single breaks occurred in 172 eyes (71.4%), and multiple breaks in 69 eyes (28.6%). Associated clinical findings included high myopia (17%), surgical aphakia (12%), and retinal detachment in the fellow eye (27%).