The Changes of Retinal Saturation after Long-Term Tamponade with Silicone Oil

الملخص EN

Purpose.

To evaluate the effects of long-term tamponade with silicone oil on retinal saturation.

Methods.

A total of 49 eyes that received tamponade with silicone oil were included.

The patients were divided into 3 groups (3–6 months, 6–9 months, and >9 months) according to the duration of silicone oil tamponade.

Retinal oximetry was performed using the Oxymap system before and 2 months after silicone oil removal.

Results.

The mean retinal oxygen saturation before silicone oil removal was 107% ± 12% in the arterioles and 60% ± 10% in the venules, with an overall arteriovenous difference (AVD) of 47% ± 14%.

The AVD in the >9-month group was significantly higher than that in the 3–6-month group (54% ± 16% versus 44% ± 11%, P = 0.042 ).

After silicone oil removal, the AVD in the >9-month group was significantly decreased (45% ± 9% versus 54% ± 16%, P = 0.009 ); additionally, the arterioles were significantly wider than before surgery (10.8 ± 0.7 pixels versus 10.4 ± 0.9 pixels, P = 0.015 ).

Conclusions.

The tamponade with silicone oil for more than 9 months will cause the alterations of retinal saturation and the narrowing of retinal arterioles, which may further interfere with the oxygen metabolism in the retina.