Metamorphopsia and Outer Retinal Morphologic Changes After Successful Vitrectomy Surgery for Macula-Off Rhegmatogenous Retinal Detachment

PURPOSE: To evaluate the correlation between metamorphopsia and outer retinal morphologic changes after successful vitrectomy for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD). METHODS: Forty eyes from 40 patients with macula-off (26 eyes) or macula-on (14 eyes) RRDs that underwent pars plana vitrectomy were included. Metamorphopsia was quantified with M-CHARTS. The relationship between the integrity of the outer retinal layers examined by spectral domain optical coherence tomography and metamorphopsia at 6 and 12 months postoperatively was evaluated. RESULTS: Metamorphopsia was significantly more frequent in eyes with macula-off RRD (88%) than in eyes with macula-on RRD (21%) at 6 months postoperatively (P < 0.001) and became significantly less frequent in macula-off RRD eyes from 6 months to 12 months (64%) postoperatively (P = 0.041). Horizontal metamorphopsia scores in eyes with continuous interdigitation zone and ellipsoid zone bands were significantly smaller than in eyes with a disrupted interdigitation zone band and a continuous ellipsoid zone band or in eyes with disrupted ellipsoid zone and interdigitation zone bands (P = 0.003 and P <0.001, respectively), which was consistent with the results of vertical metamorphopsia scores. CONCLUSION: Restoration of both the ellipsoid zone and interdigitation zone bands seems to be an important factor for the reduction of metamorphopsia after successful vitrectomy for macula-off RRD.