The retina is a membrane that covers the inside of the eye cavity and this is responsible for capturing vision and sending this information to the brain through the optic nerve. Retinal detachment is a serious visual problem that can occur at any age, although it usually occurs in middle and / or elderly people. Retinal detachments do not improve without treatment, so most retinal operations are urgent and needed to prevent permanent vision loss.

What is retina surgery like?

According to the case that occurs in the patient, one of these types of surgeries needs to be implemented: Pneumatic Retinopexy, Conventional Retinal Surgery, or Vitrectomy.

Pneumatic retinopexy

It has precise indications and is used in small, localized detachments in the upper sector. This is a rarely used procedure and is almost always done in the office. It consists of injecting a gas bubble into the eye, then they position the patient in such a way that this gas bubble floats up against the hole in the retina and pushes it back into place, to then permanently seal the hole with a laser.

Conventional retina surgery

It consists of three fundamental steps: heal the tear by cryocoagulation, diathermy or laser; place a scleral implant to reinforce the retina; and finally drain the sub retinal fluid. This procedure can be done using anesthesia while the patient is awake (local anesthesia) or while asleep (general anesthesia).

Vitrectomy

The vitreous humor that is the cause of retinal tractions is extracted and intraocular tools are used that allow a more complete surgery. Once the retina is reapplied, endolaser is performed to heal it and the vitreous humor is replaced with different options: air, gases or silicone oil. It has the advantage of being done through small incisions allowing a faster recovery.

This procedure is useful for the treatment of giant retinal tears, proliferative diabetic retinopathy with vitreous hemorrhage or retinal detachment, epiretinal membranes (macular pucker), macular holes, ocular trauma, intraocular foreign bodies, popstoperative endophthalmitis, etc.

Are there any risks?

Risks of surgery can include:

• Bleeding
• Detachment that is not completely fixed (may require additional surgeries)
• Increased pressure in the eye (elevated intraocular pressure)
• Infection
• Your vision may not be fully restored.

Surgery may require general anesthesia. The risks of any anesthesia are:

• Drug reactions
• Respiratory problems

Before

Much will depend on the location and magnitude of the detachment for the rapid performance of the operation. If possible, surgery should be done on the same day as diagnosis, if the detachment has not affected the central vision area (the macula). This can help prevent further retinal detachment. It will also increase the likelihood of preserving good vision.

If the macula detaches, it is too late to restore normal vision, but surgery can still be done to prevent total blindness. In cases like these, ophthalmologists can wait a week to 10 days to perform the retina surgery.

After

• The chances of an effective retinal repair depend on the number of holes, their size, and whether or not there is scar tissue (scars) in the area.
• In most cases, the procedures do not require an overnight hospital stay.
• You may need to reduce physical activity for some time.
• If it is for a pneumatic retinopexy procedure, you have to keep your head down or turned to the side for several days or weeks so that the gas bubble pushes the retina into place.
• People with a gas bubble in their eye cannot fly or climb to great heights until the gas bubble dissolves. This almost always happens in a few weeks.

Most of the time, the retina can be fixed again with a retina surgery. However, some people will need several surgeries. More than 9 out of 10 detachments can be repaired. Failure to repair the retina always causes vision loss to some degree.