Postsurgical evaluation of idiopathic vitreomacular traction syndrome by optical coherence tomography

PURPOSE: To report a case of idiopathic vitreomacular traction syndrome with preoperative and postoperative evaluation by optical coherence tomography. DESIGN: Interventional case report. METHODS: A 62-year-old woman presented with blurred vision in the left eye because of idiopathic vitreomacular traction syndrome, and she underwent a pars plana vitrectomy, Optical coherence tomography was per formed before and after surgery. RESULTS: Preoperative optical coherence tomography, right eye, revealed residual adhesion of incomplete posterior vitreous detachment and edematous, thickened outer retina in the macula. A successful vitrectomy relieved vitreoretinal traction with nearly complete resolution of cystoid macular edema within 1 month after surgery, followed in subsequent months by gradual foveal depression resembling a lamellar macular hole, Resolution of subretinal serous fluid was delayed with complete disappearance, some 12 months after surgery, which correlated with a gradual improvement in visual acuity. CONCLUSION: Optical coherence tomography provides a sensitive anatomical evaluation of vitreomacular traction syndrome. Reorganization of retinal tissue after surgical intervention for vitreoretinal traction may be slower than is apparent from conventional examinations. (Am J Ophthalmol 2001;132:122-123. (C) 2001 by Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.).