The Tragic Tale of a Mismanaged Posterior Capsular Tear

A 62-year-old male presented with vision loss in the right eye of 5 months' duration. He had undergone cataract surgery 5 months back. Visual acuity was no perception of light. Slit-lamp examination revealed a foldable posterior chamber intraocular lens in the anterior chamber (AC) [Figure 1a], ectropion uveae, neovascularisation of the iris [Figure 1b], and vitreous stands in AC. Ultrasound showed total closed funnel retinal detachment [Figure 1c].Figure 1: (a) Clinical photograph of the right eye at presentation showing a foldable posterior chamber intra-ocular lens in the anterior chamber. (b) Clinical slit-lamp photograph of the right eye showing neovascularisation of the iris around the pupillary margin (white arrow). (c) Ultrasound scan of the right eye showing total closed funnel retinal detachmentPosterior capsular (PC) tear is not so uncommon during cataract surgery.[1,2] All is not gloom and doom following a PC tear. Manoeuvres such as fishing for the dropped nuclear fragments in the vitreous should be avoided. The surgeon should avoid placing an intra-ocular lens in the absence of proper vitrectomy. Patients can be referred to the posterior segment surgeon for further management. Most importantly, the patient needs to be kept informed of the complications and what can be done to salvage the vision. If managed well, such cases are usually associated with a good prognosis. Declaration of patient consent The authors certify that they have obtained all appropriate patient consent forms. In the form, the patient (s) has/have given his/her/their consent for his/her/their images and other clinical information to be reported in the journal. The patients understand that their names and initials will not be published and that due efforts will be made to conceal their identity, but anonymity cannot be guaranteed. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.