Jason D Wesolosky1, Matthew Tennant1, Christopher J Rudnisky2. 1. From the Department of Ophthalmology (Wesolosky), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and the Department of Ophthalmology (Tennant, Rudnisky), University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. 2. From the Department of Ophthalmology (Wesolosky), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and the Department of Ophthalmology (Tennant, Rudnisky), University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Electronic address: crudnisk@ualberta.ca.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To determine the rate of retinal tear and retinal detachment (RD) after neodymium:YAG (Nd:YAG) laser capsulotomy for posterior capsule opacification (PCO) after cataract surgery. SETTING: Province-wide outpatient and hospital settings, Alberta, Canada. DESIGN: Database study. METHODS: Eleven years of billing records data were collected to assess the rate of retinal tear and/or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. A period of 90 days from Nd:YAG was considered the at-risk period, although statistics for 10 years of data were included in the study. Risk was calculated as a rate (%) of retinal tear or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. RESULTS: The study comprised 92 654 discrete billing records yielding 73 586 ocular procedures for the analysis of the rate of retinal tear and/or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. There were 67 287 Nd:YAG capsulotomies for PCO performed during the study. The 90-day risk for retinal tear after Nd:YAG was 0.21%; 720 retinal tears occurred in the study population at some point after the procedure. The rate of RD was 0.60%, with 2219 RDs occurring at some point after Nd:YAG capsulotomy. The cumulative risk for retinal tear or detachment at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months was 0.21%, 0.30%, 0.36%, and 0.43% and 0.60%, 0.96%, 1.19%, and 1.39%, respectively. The rates of retinal tear and detachment varied significantly between age categories. CONCLUSIONS: There was an increased risk for RD in the first 5 months after Nd:YAG, with a return to a baseline plateau thereafter. As such, the rate of retinal tear after Nd:YAG capsulotomy at 5 months was 0.29%, whereas the rate of RD was 0.87%.
PURPOSE: To determine the rate of retinal tear and retinal detachment (RD) after neodymium:YAG (Nd:YAG) laser capsulotomy for posterior capsule opacification (PCO) after cataract surgery. SETTING: Province-wide outpatient and hospital settings, Alberta, Canada. DESIGN: Database study. METHODS: Eleven years of billing records data were collected to assess the rate of retinal tear and/or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. A period of 90 days from Nd:YAG was considered the at-risk period, although statistics for 10 years of data were included in the study. Risk was calculated as a rate (%) of retinal tear or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. RESULTS: The study comprised 92 654 discrete billing records yielding 73 586 ocular procedures for the analysis of the rate of retinal tear and/or RD after Nd:YAG laser capsulotomy. There were 67 287 Nd:YAG capsulotomies for PCO performed during the study. The 90-day risk for retinal tear after Nd:YAG was 0.21%; 720 retinal tears occurred in the study population at some point after the procedure. The rate of RD was 0.60%, with 2219 RDs occurring at some point after Nd:YAG capsulotomy. The cumulative risk for retinal tear or detachment at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months was 0.21%, 0.30%, 0.36%, and 0.43% and 0.60%, 0.96%, 1.19%, and 1.39%, respectively. The rates of retinal tear and detachment varied significantly between age categories. CONCLUSIONS: There was an increased risk for RD in the first 5 months after Nd:YAG, with a return to a baseline plateau thereafter. As such, the rate of retinal tear after Nd:YAG capsulotomy at 5 months was 0.29%, whereas the rate of RD was 0.87%.