Analysis of Macular Thickness by Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) after 1 Month in Post-Operative Patients of Cataract Surgery

Title Analysis of macular thickness by Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) after 1 month in post-operative patients of cataract surgery Purpose To validate a method of reporting post-cataract macular edema (ME) using OCT and early diagnosis of symptomatic pseudophakic Cystoid Macular Edema (CME) Materials and Methods A prospective, observational study was carried out on 500 adult patients admitted for cataract surgery having no history of trauma or subluxation or pre-operative macular edema as determined by OCT. Pre-operative history taking, assessment of visual acuity (unaided, pinhole and best corrected), detailed anterior and posterior segment examination including Central Macular Thickness (CMT) was done in all the patients. Cataract surgery by Phacoemulsification or Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery (M-SICS) was done. Patients were followed up on post-operative day 1, day 7 and 1st month. Results The incidence of Pseudophakic CME or Irvine-Gass syndrome is 3.8 % (19 out of 500), out of which 16 (84.21 %) peaked at 1 month post-operatively. Conclusion An asymptomatic increase in CMT occurs even after routine cataract surgery. There is a significant difference in the incidence of Pseudophakic CME following uncomplicated and complicated cataract surgeries, the peak incidence being noted at 1 month post-operatively. OCT is indispensible for the early diagnosis and management of Pseudophakic CME.