Vitrectomy Specialist

What is a vitrectomy?

A vitrectomy is a surgical procedure to extract some or all of the vitreous humor gel from your eyeball. 

Additionally, your ophthalmologist may remove blood or other fluid, scar tissue, or foreign objects from your eye. In many cases, your ophthalmologist performs a vitrectomy to access your retina for additional surgical repairs. 

Why would I need a vitrectomy?

The ophthalmologists at Retina Specialists perform vitrectomies to address problems with your retina and vitreous humor gel. 

For example, many eye diseases can cause your vitreous humor gel to harden, cloud, or fill with blood or other debris. Retinopathy also causes abnormal blood vessels to grow and leak fluid into your eye.

Some of the conditions vitrectomy treats include:

• Abnormal blood vessels, bleeding or scar tissue that develops from diabetic retinopathy
• Retinal detachment
• Macular hole
• Macular pucker
• Endophthalmitis (a type of eye infection)
• Severe eye injuries

Your ophthalmologist may also need to perform a vitrectomy if complications develop during or after cataract surgery. 

What happens during a vitrectomy?

In most cases, a vitrectomy is an outpatient procedure. Your Retina Specialists ophthalmologist numbs your eye and provides a sedative to keep you calm and relaxed during the operation. 

Then, they make a small incision in your sclera — the white part of your eye— and use a specially designed microscope to look into your eye. Your ophthalmologist uses tiny surgical tools to complete the surgery, removing cloudy vitreous humor gel, scar tissue, or foreign objects.

If necessary, they place your retina into its correct position against the back of your eye or use a laser to repair your retina. Finally, they put an air or silicone bubble in your eye to hold your retina in place while your eye heals. 

What should I expect after a vitrectomy?

If your ophthalmologist placed a gas bubble in your eye during vitrectomy to hold your retina in place, you might need to keep your head in a face-down position for a while. 

Your ophthalmologist gives you personalized aftercare instructions as well as pain killers and eye drops to reduce your risk of infection. You may also need to wear an eye patch for a few days. 

Call Retina Specialists today or schedule an appointment online with one of the highly experienced ophthalmologists to learn more about vitrectomy.