Concurrent removal of intravitreal lens fragments after phacoemulsification with pars plana vitrectomy prevents development of retinal detachment

AIM: To evaluate the outcomes of "concurrent vitrectomy" to retrieve dislocated lens fragment during phacoemulsification. METHODS: In a retrospective, observational case series, data of patients who underwent "concurrent" pars plena vitrectomy (PPV) for dislocated lens fragments between the period 2000 and 2008 were reviewed. Data collected included patient demographics, pre -operative visual acuity, intra -operative occurrence of retinal breaks, duration of follow up, post-operative intraocular pressure, final best -corrected visual acuity (BCVA), presence of cystoid macular edema (CME) and occurrence of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD). RESULTS: A total of 58 eyes of 58 patients were included in the study. At 12mo the mean postoperative BCVA was logMAR 0.17 (20/30) with a range of logMAR 0 to 0.69 (20/20 to 20/100), with 96.6% (56/58) of patients showing post -operative improvement in visual acuity (P=0.005). None of the patients developed postoperative retinal detachment, endophthalmitis or non -resolving uveitis at 12mo. CONCLUSION: Our study results suggest concurrent PPV for retained lens fragments after cataract surgery is beneficial and may decrease the risk of glaucoma and prevent development of RRD.