OBJECTIVE:

This study aimed to review the best postoperative visual recovery in patients with macula-off detachments of 7 days' duration or less.

DESIGN:

Noncontrolled, prospective, interventional case series.

PARTICIPANTS:

A total of 104 patients with macula-off detachments of 7 days or less were studied, and the time of the macular detachment within the first 7 days was carefully determined.

INTERVENTION:

All 104 detachments were repaired with a primary scleral buckling procedure. Four cases were primary failures and were excluded from the study.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:

Statistical methods were used to compare the visual results of three groups of patients; those operated on between 1 and 2 days, 3 and 4 days, or 5 and 7 days after macular involvement.

RESULTS:

The mean postoperative visual acuity was 20/60. Fifty-nine percent of patients regained 20/50 or better visual acuity, 35% regained visual acuity between 20/60 and 20/200, and 5% of patients were left with visual acuity of less than 20/200 regardless of whether they had undergone surgery within 1 to 2 days, 3 to 4 days, or 5 to 7 days after macular involvement. There was no statistical difference in visual recovery in patients operated on within 1 to 2 days, 3 to 4 days, or 5 to 7 days after macular involvement (P = 0.533).

CONCLUSION:

Within the first week after development of macula-off retinal detachment, delay in surgical repair does not adversely affect visual outcome.