Scleral buckle removal as treatment for persistent subfoveal fluid after scleral buckle surgery for retinal detachment.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the removal of scleral buckle (SB) as a potential treatment option for persistent subfoveal fluid after SB retinal reattachment surgery.


METHODS
Case report of a single patient.


RESULTS
A 56-year-old man with a preoperative best-corrected visual acuity of 20/20 underwent SB surgery for a macula-on retinal detachment. Postoperatively he developed subfoveal fluid with best-corrected visual acuity ranging from 20/30 to 20/40. Nine months after the original retinal reattachment surgery, the patient underwent SB removal as a treatment for persistent subfoveal fluid and incomplete recovery of visual acuity. One week after SB removal, the subfoveal fluid was substantially diminished and best-corrected visual acuity had returned to 20/20.


CONCLUSIONS
This case suggests that removal of SB after retinal reattachment may be a viable treatment option in patients with persistent subfoveal fluid on optical coherence tomography and incomplete recovery of preoperative visual acuity.
From the *Retina Consultants of Alabama, Callahan Eye Foundation Hospital; and †Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Birmingham, Alabama.
John O
JO
Mason
Alinda A
AA
McGowin
Rachel
R
Vail