OCULAR BLOOD-FLOW VELOCITY REDUCTION AFTER BUCKLING SURGERY

Background: It has been reported that scleral buckling reduces the blo od flow velocity in retinal vessels. Blood flow changes may also appea r in other ocular and extraocular vessels. This study describes the bl ood flow velocity changes in the ophthalmic artery (OA) after performi ng this procedure. Methods: The study was carried out in 12 patients ( 12 eyes) with rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. Color Doppler imaging was used to measure the peak and average blood flow velocity in the O A. Measurements were taken 1 day before and 2 days after scleral buckl ing surgery was performed. Intraocular pressure (IOP) was measured pri or to each ultrasound study. Results: We found that statistically sign ificant reductions in the peak flow velocity (33%) and average flow ve locity (31%) occur in the OA after scleral buckling. All patients show ed an increase in IOP after surgery. Conclusion: Buckling surgery redu ces the blood flow velocity in the OA. Since the OA is the origin of t he arterial branches that supply blood to the eye, our results suggest that scleral buckling may decrease not only retinal but also choroida l blood perfusion. Some extraocular structures might also be affected.