Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: To study the histopathologic characteristics of epiretinal membranes (ERM) obtained during vitrectomy and to correlate the observations to clinical relevance. Methods: Clinical records of 40 patients with ERM from 1995 to 2000 were reviewed. Demographics, preoperative & postoperative vision, location & type of membranes were studied. Histopathologic features were correlated with clinical parameters. The results were analyzed statistically. Results: The clinical diagnoses included Diabetes (27.5%), Eales (25%), Trauma (15%), Branch vein occlusion (10%) & Retinal Detachment (10%). The type of membranes were fibrous (50%), Vascular (20%), Fibrovascular (20%) and inflammatory (15%). Fibrovascular membranes were associated with better vision (P=0.033). Membrane peeling improved vision in most subgroups, except in trauma (P=0.018). Conclusion: Histological features of ERM aid in prognosticating visual outcome. Larger number of cases with long follow-up are required to draw more definite conclusions.
Keywords: 507 pathology: human • 554 retina • 615 vascular occlusion/vascular occlusive disease