Macular Hole Formation in Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment after Scleral Buckling

PURPOSE To describe early macular hole (MH) development in rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) after scleral buckling (SB) based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) findings. METHODS The medical records and spectral domain OCT images of patients in whom MH developed after RRD repair were evaluated retrospectively. RESULTS A postoperative MH was detected in five eyes that underwent SB during a 6-year period. All had fovea-off RRD without MH at the time of surgery. OCT showed partial loss of the inner retina with a preserved photoreceptor layer in early postoperative days. On average, 7 days (range,5 to 8 days) after surgery, outer retinal tissues disappeared, resulting in the full-thickness MH. CONCLUSIONS Serial OCT findings revealed that partial-thickness lamellar holes progressed to full-thickness MHs, which were formed by the degeneration of the outer retina in eyes with preceding loss of the glial cone in the fovea.