Management of persistent exudative retinal detachment: exploring etiology and surgical outcomes

This report aims to present the causes, clinical features, and surgical outcomes of persistent exudative retinal detachment (ERD) in a single tertiary referral center experience.

We retrospectively analyzed 48 patients who underwent vitreoretinal intervention for persistent ERD between 2017 and 2024. The study assessed patient demographics, underlying causes of ERD, the success rate of surgical interventions, and postoperative visual outcomes.

Of the 2040 eyes with retinal detachment treated at our center, 48 (2.35%) were diagnosed with ERD. Coats disease was the most frequent underlying cause, identified in 18 (37.5%) of ERD cases. Choroidal hemangioma (n = 6, 12.5%) and nanophthalmos (n = 5, 10.4%) were the next most common etiologies. The study population comprised 48 patients (30 males and 18 females) with a mean age of 37.48 years (range, 4–88 years). The mean best-corrected visual acuity remained stable from baseline to follow-up. The recurrence rate following primary surgery was 29.2%. Patients underwent a mean of 1.75 ± 1.00 surgeries. Globe preservation was achieved in 44 eyes (91.7%), while phthisis bulbi developed in 4 eyes (8.3%).

Vitreoretinal surgery may be considered as a salvage procedure in cases where persistent ERD threatens the posterior pole. In our study, Coats’ disease, choroidal hemangioma, and nanophthalmos were identified as the most common etiologies associated with persistent ERD. Surgical intervention has the potential to preserve vision, but the high recurrence rate necessitates a cautious approach and the possibility of multiple surgeries.