VISUAL RESULTS AFTER SUBMACULAR SURGERY FOR NEOVASCULARIZATION IN AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Submacular membranectomy has been proposed a s a treatment option for subfoveal choroidal neovascular membranes (CN VMs). The authors reviewed the visual outcomes of patients who underwe nt surgical removal of subfoveal CNVMs caused by age-related macular d egeneration (ARMD). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty-eight patients (38 ey es) were retrospectively reviewed. Selection criteria included: (I) th e presence of a well-demarcated subfoveal CNVM on fluorescein angiogra phy; (2) best-corrected Snellen visual acuity reduced to the level of 20/200 or worse; and (3) no other eye disease that could compromise vi sual acuity. Pars plana vitrectomy, retinotomy, and membrane removal w ere performed to remove the subfoveal choroidal neovascular complex wi th minimal disruption of the surrounding tissues. A significant change was defined as a two-line difference from best-corrected preoperative visual acuity on the Snellen chart. RESULTS: At 3 months postoperativ ely, 7 (18.4%) of the 38 eyes had improved, 8 (21.1%) of the eyes had worsened, and 23 (60.5%) of the eyes had remained unchanged. The final visual acuity improved in 8 (21.1%) of the eyes, worsened in 11 (28.9 %) of the eyes, and remained unchanged in 19 (50%) of the eyes. The av erage follow-up time was 632 days. CONCLUSIONS: The authors employed a minimally invasive approach to the removal of CNVMs in ARMD. Neverthe less, the resultant visual acuity was often unsatisfactory. Therefore, the authors recommend not operating on ARMD-associated subfoveal CNVM s with the current technology.