Unexplained Acute Total Loss of Vision After Primary Scleral Buckle Surgery.

Purpose: To present 2 cases of acute total loss of vision after scleral buckle surgery for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. Methods: A retrospective chart review of 2 cases and an analysis of the literature were performed. Results: An 18-year-old woman and a 67-year-old woman suffered complete loss of vision in their operative eye after primary scleral buckle surgery with encircling bands. Conclusions: Profound ocular ischemia resulting in total acute vision loss is a rare and devastating outcome of primary scleral buckle procedures and may be caused by strangulation of the eye with an encircling band. Attention paid to the key tenets of this often successful and useful surgical technique may lower the risk for this complication.