Outcome of primary vitrectomy in phakic patients aged younger than 50 years with rhegmatogenous retinal detachments

Purpose To evaluate the visual outcome, primary anatomic success, and cataract progression of phakic eyes of patients aged younger than 50 years treated for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) with primary pars plana vitrectomy (PPV). Methods This was a retrospective, observational, cross-sectional study. The data from 53 RRD patients undergoing PPV were analyzed. The time course changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and cataract formation were examined. Results The 53 patients had a mean age of 37.8 years. Forty-eight eyes (90.6 %) achieved anatomic success after the primary surgery. The BCVA improved significantly after surgery (mean ± SD −0.091 ± 0.146) when compared with the baseline (mean ± SD 0.214 ± 0.597; P = 0.0001). No patient aged younger than 40 years (mean 32.5 years; range 17–39) developed significant lens opacity or received cataract surgery within the first 3 years. Of the patients aged older than 40 years (mean 43.8 years; range 40–49), 22 % developed significant lens opacity and received cataract surgery within the first 3 years. A significant difference was found in cataract progression between the two groups within the first 3 years ( P = 0.0217), but not over the entire follow-up period ( P = 0.1679). Conclusions We found that lens-sparing PPV for RRD in patients aged younger than 50 years had a reasonable success rate, although cataract progression was evident during the follow-up period in patients aged older than 40 years.