Risk of Complications of Vitrectomy for Floaters Based on Attached or Detached Status of Posterior Hyaloid Face

Purpose: To ascertain whether posterior hyaloid face (PHF) status (attached vs detached) affects the risk of intraoperative retinal breaks and number of operations in patients undergoing vitrectomy for floaters. Methods: Consecutive, comparative single-surgeon case series. All patients undergoing vitrectomy for visually disabling floaters between July 2003 and June 2016 were included in this study. Data were collected prospectively into a vitreoretinal database and reviewed retrospectively for the purpose of the study.The following data were collected on each patient: age in years, sex, axial length (mm), presence of myopia, pre- and postoperative visual acuity in logarithm of the minimal angle of resolution. The status of the PHF was ascertained using preoperative clinical and OCT assessment that was confirmed intraoperatively.[AQ1] The presence or absence of a retinal break was considered the primary outcome measure. Significant visual loss (reduction in 2 log units visual acuity), number of operations, and time from surgery to discharge were considered the secondary outcomes. Sequential multiple logistic and Cox regression analyses were conducted. Results: Data were collected from 97 patients (55 males and 42 females). Indications for surgery were Fuchs heterochromic cyclitis (9 patients), asteroid hyalosis (12 patients), and vitreous syneresis (76 patients). Twenty-one patients were pseudophakic on presentation, while 76 underwent combined phacovitrectomy. Vitreous status was significantly associated with retinal breaks (P ¼ .010). Controlling for other parameters, the odds of a retinal break in patients with PHF attached were about 5.5 times those in patients with PHF detached (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.52 -20.4). Number of operations was also significantly associated with this outcome (P ¼ .027); the odds of a retinal break increase by 6.28 times (95% CI, 1.23 -32.1). A substantive difference in the proportion of patients with retinal breaks was observed between the 2 groups, with a 50% prevalence rate in the attached group and a 9.1% prevalence rate in the detached group. Vitreous status was not associated with either secondary outcome measures. Number of operations was also significantly associated with time to discharge (P ¼ .008; hazard ratio, 2.78; 95% CI, 1.30 -5.91) in a multiple Cox model. Hence an increasing number of operations is associated with longer time to discharge. Conclusion: The analysis has found evidence to link vitreous status with the primary outcome of the presence of a retinal break. Particular care should be taken in, cases with vitreous attached status, to prevent missed breaks and subsequent rhegmatogenous retinal detachment.