Natural evolution of massive vitreous hemorrhage in diabetic retinopathy.

A study of 131 eyes with massive vitreous hemorrhage of diabetic origin showed that 3 months after the hemorrhage visual acuity had improved in 34 eyes (25.9%), was unchanged in 82 (62.6%), and had worsened in 15 (11.4%). The number of eyes improving between 3 and 6 months post-hemorrhage was the same as the number whose visual acuity worsened, 19 (14.5%). After 6 months, the proportion of worsening eyes was much greater than that of improving eyes, so that 2 years post-hemorrhage, 48.8% of the 86 eyes remaining in the study had visual acuity of below hand-movements standard, and 29.1% visual acuity better than hand-movements standard, as against respectively 22.1% and 38.2% of the original 131 eyes 6 months post-hemorrhage.