Retinal detachment after primary pneumatic retinopexy.

To describe the characteristics and outcome of patients who required retinal reattachment surgery after pneumatic retinopexy for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. Retrospective review of patients who underwent retinal reattachment surgery after pneumatic retinopexy at a multioffice retina practice. Patients with <6 months follow-up were excluded. Two hundred eighty-nine eyes from 289 patients underwent pneumatic retinopexy and 50 eyes of 50 patients were included in this study. The mean follow-up time was 28 +/- 20.4 months (range, 6-76 months). The most common cause of detachment was development of a new retinal detachment (72%) associated with the development of a new retinal break (75%). Increased or persistent subretinal fluid associated with the original detachment was the cause of detachment in 28% of eyes. The mean number of procedures for retinal reattachment was 1.4 +/- 0.9 (range, 1-5) with the majority (72%) reattached with 1 surgery. The mean visual acuity on presentation was 20/125 (range, 20/20-hand movements) and at the final visit was 20/50 (range, 20/20-counting fingers). Retinal reattachment surgery after pneumatic retinopexy is successful with anatomic and functional improvement. The most common cause of detachment is the formation of new inferior retinal detachment caused by a new break.