Mechanism of Retinal Displacement Following Pars Plana Vitrectomy

This video demonstrates the suggested mechanism for retinal displacement following pars plana vitrectomy. Typically in a vitrectomy, the small amount of residual subretinal fluid that remains at the completion of surgery along with the use of an intraocular gas tamponade may result in the displacement of subretinal fluid under the influence of the buoyant force of the gas bubble and gravity in a direction related to postoperative positioning. This generally results in fluid flowing from posterior to anterior and often inferiorly, resulting in a corresponding stretch of the retina and misalignment of the photoreceptors with the retinal pigment epithelium compared with their original preretinal detachment location.