A detached retina is a serious and urgent condition to understand why it
helps to know how the eye works light travels through the cornea and is
focused by the lens onto the retina a fine layer of tissue at the back of the
eye the retina contains thousands of light receptors that capture the detail
of what we see the biggest concentration of receptors lie here in the macula at
the center of the retina we use the macula for reading and seeing detail the
retina is kept in place with the help of a clear sticky fluid called vitreous
which fills our eye with age or injury the vitreous peels away from the surface
of the retina and can tear a hole in it once torn fluid can seep under the
retinal tissue lifting it away from the wall of your eye this is called a
detached retina you may experience flashing lights or other disturbances in
your vision like floaters if left untreated the retina will continue to
detach causing a blind patch to creep across your vision this can cause
permanent loss of vision surgery to reposition the detached
retina is the only solution and this should be done as soon as practical so
what happens on the day of your surgery a great deal of care is taken to make
sure that the information about you is accurate and up-to-date you may be asked
more than once about your medical history and what medications you're
currently taking eyedrops are used to dilate your pupil
this gives the surgeon a clearer view inside the eye your eye will be marked
to alert medical staff when preparing for your surgery you will need an
anaesthetic
most eye surgery is done under local anesthetic that is an injection or drops
are used to numb the area around your eye before this a sedative is given to
help you relax you may feel drowsy but you will remain
conscious however you should not see or feel anything during the operation and
may not remember it either the surgeon uses a microscope to see into the back
of the eye surgery to reattach the retina can normally be done in about one
hour first the surgeon will remove the
vitreous in your eye this is called a vitrectomy then the retina is pushed
back into place with a gas bubble tears or holes are repaired using laser
therapy a silicon band may be placed around the eye
after surgery you'll be taken to a recovery ward while the sedative wears
off you will remain in hospital overnight if you have gas in your eye
you will need to lie facedown to allow the gas bubble to rest against the
retina
an I shield will protect the eye from accidental injury
following surgery you will attend a clinic at the hospital here the doctor
or their team will check the position of the retina
they will give you eyedrops to prevent infection while your eye is healing and
an information sheet on how to care for your eye you will wear a wristband while
the gas remains in your eye the band alerts others if you have a medical
emergency and reminds you not to undertake air travel in this period it's
difficult to know how successful the surgery has been until the eye heals
sometimes multiple surgeries are necessary to fix the retina in place
there is an increased risk of developing a cataract following retinal surgery
this may require cataract surgery sometime in the future the Sydney Eye
Hospital performs thousands of sight saving surgeries each year
the hospital is supported through the fundraising initiatives of the Sydney Eye
Hospital Foundation in the interests of providing quality Eye care for all