Abstract
Purpose
To determine whether vitrectomy for diffuse diabetic macular edema with and without internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling is equally effective in reducing edema.
METHODS
The authors retrospectively analyzed the surgical outcomes in 73 eyes of 52 patients with diffuse diabetic macular edema. Eighteen eyes (Group A) underwent three-port pars plana vitrectomy with posterior hyaloid membrane (PHM) removal, while 55 eyes (Group B) had pars plana vitrectomy with additional ILM peeling after PHM removal. RESULTS. Intraoperatively the posterior hyaloid was found to be attached to the macula in all eyes. In Group A, macular edema resolved completely in 8 eyes (44.4%) with improvement of visual acuity (VA). In Group B, VA improved in 38 eyes (69.1%) with complete resolution of edema. The results of this study indicated that vitrectomy effectively reduced macular edema but eyes with ILM peeling (Group B) presented better results than those without ILM peeling. Another important factor related to the outcome seems to be the level of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c).
CONCLUSIONS
In eyes with diffuse diabetic macular edema vitrectomy seems to be effective, but additional ILM peeling presented better results.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.