Stage II and III idiopathic macular holes treated by triamcinolone-assisted posterior vitreous detachment and internal limiting membrane peeling without any dye

Objective To evaluate the anatomic and visual outcomes of idiopathic macular holes treated with triamcinolone (TA)-assisted posterior vitreous detachment (PVD) and then internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling without any dye. Methods Twenty-three patients (23 eyes) with stage Ⅱand Ⅲidiopathic macular holes were enrolled. The best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), the lens, the duration,stage and size of the macular holes were measured before and after the surgery. The preoperative BCVA was 0.04 to 0.40; the logMAR was 0.398 to 1.398 with the mean of 0.846±0.310. All surgery involved TA-assisted PVD and then ILM peeling without any dye.Combined cataract extraction with vitrectomy was performed on 5 eyes.The follow-up ranged from 6 to 16 months with the mean of 9 months. Results Anatomic macular hole closure was achieved in 22 eyes (95.7%) at the first month after surgery and in 23eyes (100.0%) finally. At the 6th months after surgery, the BCVA was 0.12 to 0.90, logMAR was 0.046 to 0.921 with the mean of 0.410±0.209, compared with preoperative BCVA, the difference was statistically significant (t=6.636, P＜0.0001). BCVA increased in 21 eyes (91.3%) and kept unchanged in 2 eyes (8.7%). There are 1-3 spots self-limited bleeding on the retinal surface when the ILM was peeled in 5 eyes. Postoperative complications included progression of cataract in 9 patients and transient intraocular pressure elevation in 6 patients. Conclusions TA-assisted PVD and then ILM peeling without any dye is an effective and safe surgical technique in stage Ⅱ and Ⅲ idiopathic macular hole. Key words: Retinal perforations/surgery;  Triamcinolone acetonide/ therapeutic uses Vitrectomy