Predisposing characteristics of optical coherence tomography for patients with persistent subretinal fluid after successful repair of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment

To investigate the predisposing clinical parameters and characteristics of fundus imaging of patients with persistent subretinal fluid (PSF) after successful repair of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment.A retrospective study recruiting 57 patients was conducted. All patients underwent pars plana vitrectomy with silicone oil tamponade. Patients were divided into two groups: patients presenting PSF by the time of silicone oil removal as PSF group and patients presenting no PSF by the time of silicone oil removal as control group. All patients were followed up for 3 months or longer after primary surgery. Ophthalmic examinations, including fundus photography and optical coherence tomography, were performed.There were significant differences between the two groups in average age, durations of preoperative symptoms, and type of retinal breaks ( P < 0.05). These clinical parameters showed statistical correlations with PSF ( P < 0.05). The proportions of patients presenting distinctive boundaries of the detached retina on fundus photograph and patients showing a hyperreflective line underlying the detached retina on optical coherence tomography in the PSF group were both significantly higher than the control group ( P < 0.05). The macular detachment heights on optical coherence tomography in the PSF group were significantly lower than the control group ( P < 0.05). These imaging characteristics also showed strong correlations with PSF ( P < 0.05).This study suggests that patients with PSF have younger age, longer symptom duration, and higher incidence of retinal holes. The distinctive detachment boundary on fundus photograph, lower macular detachment height, and hyperreflective line underlying the detached retina on optical coherence tomography may be the predisposing characteristics of PSF.