Characteristics of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment after refractive surgery: Comparison with myopic eyes with retinal detachment – Accepted Manuscript

Abstract: Purpose: To evaluate the characteristics of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) in patients with previous laser in-situ keratomileusis (LASIK) and compared them to RD in patients with previous laser assisted sub-epithelial keratomileusis (LASEK) and myopic patients with no previous refractive surgery.Design: Retrospective, comparative case seriesMethods: Among 106 eyes of 106 patients, RD patients with previous refractive surgery included 21 eyes with LASIK and 13 eyes with LASEK. 72 myopic patients with refractive errors of -3.0 diopters or less were grouped as the R (-) group. Characteristics of RD included distribution of RD and associated retinal breaks, location and number of retinal breaks, presence of lattice degeneration, and axial lengths.Results: The mean interval between refractive surgery and the onset of rhegmatogenous RD was 63.7±43.5 months, occurring across a broad spectrum of time interval. There were no significant differences among LASIK group, LASEK group, and R (-) group in axial length (26.8 mm vs. 26.4 mm vs. 26.9 mm, respectively), mean number of retinal holes/tears, (2.1/1.5, 0.9/1.4, 1.5/1.6, respectively) and the presence of lattice degeneration(52.4%vs. 46.2% vs. 43.1%, respectively). Distribution of RD and associated retinal breaks were also not significant different, as retinal holes and tears were more prevalent in the temporal quadrants, and inferotemporal quadrants was the most commonly detached area in both LASEK/LASIK group and R (-) group.Conclusions: Myopia is a well-known risk factor for rhegmatogenous RD and may contribute more to the development of RD in myopic patients after refractive surgery, rather than refractive surgery itself.