Retinal Detachment Health Article

Diagnosis

If the eye is clear—that is, if there is no clouding of the liquids inside the eye—the detachment can be seen by looking into the eye with a hand-held instrument called an ophthalmoscope. To evaluate the blood vessels in the retina, a fluorescent dye (fluorescein) may be injected into a vein and photographed with ultraviolet light as it passes through the retina. Further studies may include computed tomography scan (CT scan), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or ultrasound study. Other lenses may be used to examine the back of the eyes. One example is binocular indirect ophthalmoscopy. The doctor dilates the patient's eyes with eyedrops and then examines the back of the eyes with a hand-held lens.

Treatment

Reattaching the retina to the inner surface of the eye requires making a scar that will hold it in place and then bringing the retina close to the scarred area. The scar can be made from the outside, through the sclera, using either a laser or a freezing cold probe (cryopexy). Bringing the retina close to the scar can be done in two ways. A tiny belt tightened around the eyeball will bring the sclera in until it reaches the retina. This procedure is called scleral buckling and may be done under general anesthesia. Using this procedure permits the repair of retinal detachments without entering the eyeball. Sometimes, the eye must be entered to pump in air or gas, forcing the retina outward against the sclera and its scar. This is called pneumatic retinopexy and can generally be done under local anesthesia.

If all else fails, and especially if there is disease in the vitreous, the vitreous may have to be removed in a procedure called vitrectomy. This can be done through tiny holes in the eye, through which equally tiny instruments are placed to suck out the vitreous and replace it with saline, a salt solution. The procedure must maintain pressure inside the eye so that the eye does not collapse.

Prognosis

Retinal reattachment has an 80–90% success rate.