Unexpected traction retinal detachment: a complication of an animal model of pars plana vitrectomy.

We evaluated a rabbit model of the vitrectomized eye. In 16% of eyes the surgical procedure leads to the development of traction detachment of the vascularized portion of the retina (medullary ray). The traction originates in the vitreous base and is probably transmitted to the posterior retina via a sheet of detached vitreous cortex. In time course and morphology this differs from the experimental traction detachment seen after the injection of cells. Provided this complication is recognized, the vitrectomized rabbit eye is a useful and economic model for experimental studies.