The Outcome of Early Surgical Repair With Vitrectomy and Silicone Oil in Open-Globe Injuries With Retinal Detachment

Purpose To determine the functional and anatomic outcome of early surgical repair with vitrectomy and silicone oil in open-globe injuries with retinal detachment (RD). Design Retrospective consecutive interventional case series. Methods All patients with open-globe injuries with RD treated between 1997 and 2007 underwent primary repair including vitrectomy with silicone oil within 8 hours after presentation. For data analysis, patients were divided into 3 groups according to the BETT classification: Group 1, intraocular foreign body; Group 2, penetrating injury; Group 3, globe rupture. Outcome measures were final reading visual acuity (0.4 logMAR or better), final ambulatory visual acuity (1.6 logMAR or better), endophthalmitis, and postoperative proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). Results Eighty-eight patients were included (Group 1, n=13; Group 2, n=36; Group 3, n=39). Mean follow-up was 22 months (standard deviation [SD] = 23, range 6-107 months). Eight percent of patients retained reading vision without significant difference between the 3 groups. Fewer patients in Group 3 than in Group 1 or 2 retained ambulatory visual acuity (Group 1, 62%; Group 2, 64%; Group 3, 33%, P = .024). Endophthalmitis occurred in 3.4% of eyes (1 eye in each group). PVR grade B-C, type 1–3 developed in 44% of patients without significant difference between the 3 groups. Re-RD occurred in 38% of eyes. Conclusions Few patients achieved reading vision while 50% of patients retained ambulatory visual acuity. Final visual outcome is related to the severity of the injury. The frequency of postoperative endophthalmitis is low. Postoperative development of advanced PVR is avoided in most patients.