2Associate Prof. MD, Ophthalomology Department of University of Health Sciences Dışkapı Yıldırım Beyazıt Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey DOI : 10.37845/ret.vit.2021.30.6 Purpose: To evaluate the structural and functional changes in the retinal layers after epiretinal membrane (ERM) surgery combined with internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling.
Material and Methods: The files of patients who had surgery between 2015 - 2019 years were scrutinized retrospectively. Patients visual acuity and central foveal thickness, perifoveal and parafoveal retinal thickness, nasal and temporal inner and outer retinal thickness which were measured by spectral domain optic coherence tomography (SD-OCT) were recorded at preoperative and 12. months. The changes in the visual acuity, central foveal thickness, ellipsoid zone damage, dissociated optic nerve fiber layer (DONFL), subretinal deposit accumulation and foveal contour were evaluated.
Results: Fifty-one eyes of 51 patients and 40 healthy subjects as control were enrolled. Except perifoveal and parafoveal nasal outer retinal segment, all retinal layers were reduced in the 12 months. When the patients compared to the controls, inner retinal layers were thinner in all ERM patients. Whilst the mean outer retinal layer thickness in the temporal region was similar, it was thicker in the nasal region of the patient group. All patients had DONFL after the surgery. There wasn't any recurrence case. Four patients (% 7.8) had ellipsoid zone damage and 2 patients (% 3.9) had subretinal deposits.
Conclusions: ILM peeling may decrease the recurrence of ERM. However, it may lead to a decrease in the inner retinal layer thickness and changes in the retinal layer thickness. Further studies are needed to clarify long-term effects on the visual acuity.
Keywords : Dissociated optic nerve fiber layer, Epiretinal membrane, Internal limiting membrane