Outcomes of Using Perfluorocarbon Liquid as Postoperative Tamponade in Complex Inferior Retinal Detachments.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the outcomes of using perfluorocarbon liquid (PFCL) as postoperative tamponade in complex inferior retinal detachments. STUDY DESIGN: Quasi-experimental study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Layton Rahmatullah Benevolent Trust (LRBT) Eye Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan, from January 2020 to December 2021. METHODOLOGY: This study was carried out on forty eyes of forty patients from the surgical retina clinic with rhegmatogenous inferior retinal detachment involving macula having proliferative vitreoretinopathy grade C (PVR grade-C). All eyes underwent 25G pars plana vitrectomy with PFCL as postoperative tamponade for 15 to 21 days. All patients were advised to maintain supine position postoperatively. PFCL-Silicon oil exchange was done after 15-21 days. The outcomes were measured as complete retinal reattachment between the neurosensory retina (NSR) and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), changes in postoperative visual acuity and complications. Patients were followed up for a minimum duration of 6 months. Data were analysed using SPSS version 23. RESULTS: In 39 out of 40 eyes (97.5%) retina was completely attached. Postoperative visual acuity was improved in 24 eyes (60%), while in 16 eyes (40%) it remained stable. Worsening of visual acuity was not noted in any case. During follow-ups, uveitis was detected in 2 eyes (5%), cataract in 4 eyes (10%), optic atrophy in 2 eyes (5%) and endophthalmitis and subsequently redetachment in 1 eye (2.5%). CONCLUSION: In complex inferior retinal detachments, PFCL is safe and effective postoperative tamponade provided it is used for a short-term period, especially in those patients who are noncompliant with postoperative face-down position. KEY WORDS: Perfluorocarbon liquid (PFCL), Postoperative tamponade, Complex inferior retinal detachments.