A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY ON THE OUTCOMES OF PNEUMATIC VITREOLYSIS FOR THE TREATMENT OF VITREOMACULAR TRACTION.

PURPOSE: To study the effectiveness and safety of pneumatic vitreolysis (PVL) for the treatment of symptomatic vitreomacular traction (VMT) and macular holes (MHs) with VMT.

METHODS

This was a retrospective, monocentric analysis of 92 consecutive VMT (±MH) patients treated with pneumatic vitreolysis at University Hospitals Leuven between January 2022 and March 2024.

RESULTS

Release of VMT occurred in 60% of the patients who had VMT and in 86% of the patients who had MHs. MH closure occurred in 29% of the small MHs. Lens status was the only predictor of VMT release, with an odds ratio of 0.232 for pseudophakia ( P = 0.013). Successful pneumatic vitreolysis was associated with significant improvements in the best-corrected visual acuity in patients with VMT ( P = 0.007) and in patients with MHs ( P = 0.034). Two patients (2.2%) suffered a retinal tear, one of which led to retinal detachment. Two patients with VMT (3.17%) developed a MH.

CONCLUSION

Pneumatic vitreolysis using the injection of 0.2 cc of C2F6 and subsequent posturing seems to be beneficial with limited complications for symptomatic focal VMT and for (very) small MHs with VMT, especially in phakic patients. The complication rate in this study was lower than that previously reported.