title: Outcomes of bilateral macular hole surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Characteristics and outcomes in patients undergoing macular hole surgery in both eyes are studied.
  
  
  METHODS
  Demographic and clinical data were abstracted from patients' medical records for a retrospective study of 31 consecutive patients (62 eyes) who underwent macular hole surgery in both eyes between 1992-1998. Outcome measures included best corrected Snellen visual acuity and status of the macular hole 3 months after surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The duration of symptoms was 5.5 months at the time of surgery in the first eye and 9.8 months in the second operated eye (P= 0.063). The macular hole was closed after surgery in both eyes (17), only in the first eye (6), only in the second eye (6), and not closed in either eye (2) (P = 0.9) (46/62, 74% eyes overall). With reoperation 55/62 (89%) were closed. In eyes with a closed macular hole, the visual acuity improved 2 or more lines in 20 (88%) first eyes and 12 (52%) of the second eyes (P = 0.02). Cataract surgery was performed in 12 (41%) first eyes and 13 (45%) second eyes within 1 year of the initial macular hole surgery. The occurrence of cataract surgery in the second eye correlated with the first eye (P= 0.017).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Macular hole surgery is usually successful in one or both eyes. Surgical results in the second eye do not appear to correlate with the results in the first eye.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami 33101, USA.
authors.forename: Homayoun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tabandeh
authors.forename: William E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Smiddy
authors.forename: Mozart
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mello
authors.forename: Harry W
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Flynn
authors.forename: William J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Feuer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002387:Cataract Extraction; D005260:Female; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016684:Prone Position; D012086:Reoperation; D012167:Retinal Perforations / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology; D014821:Vitrectomy
chemical_list: D005466:Fluorocarbons; C042852:perflutren