Purpose: To report a case of inadvertent subretinal cannulation of ab externo suture trabeculotomy surgery associated with serous macular detachment.
Methods: Retrospective case report. Ophthalmic examination and portable spectral domain optical coherence tomography (Envisu C2300; Bioptogen, Morrisville, NC) were performed under general anesthesia.
Results: A 5-year-old girl with uveitis secondary to oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis underwent trabeculotomy surgery of the left eye for steroid-induced glaucoma refractory to medical management. The surgery was complicated by inadvertent subretinal cannulation with the prolene suture. Multiple, arcuate, hypopigmented subretinal tracks, originating from the ora serrata, were observed. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography images through the macula revealed subretinal fluid overlying funduscopically visible tracks, defects in photoreceptor outer segments overlying the tracks, and normal choroidal anatomy. The serous macular detachment resolved spontaneously after 4 months and visual acuity returned to baseline 20/25 in the left eye, consistent with reversible localized damage to the outer retina and retinal pigment epithelium.
Conclusion: We report a case of inadvertent subretinal cannulation during suture trabeculotomy surgery that resulted in serous macular detachment which resolved spontaneously. The inadvertent complication demonstrated a pathway for administration of therapeutics to the subretinal space.