A follow-up study of macular structure and visual function after idiopathic epiretinal membrane surgery

Objective To investigate the relationship between macularstructure and visual acuity in patients with idiopathic macular membrane surgery. Methods A retrospective trail analyzed the data of 38 patients (38eyes). The best corrected visual acuity(BCVA), central foveal thickness(CFT), average macular thickness were measured and the correlations between BCVA, CFT and average macular thickness were investigated using Pearson correlation analysis. Patients were divided into two groups based on whether the Ellipsoid Zone (EZ) was irregular. The BCVA, CFT and average macular thickness of each group were also analyzed. Results The mean BCVA was improved to0.45 (SD 0.26) and the mean CFT regressed to 334.5um (SD 69.5).The preoperative BCVA was significantly correlated with preoperative average macular thickness and the final BCVA was correlated with final CFT. A linear relationship between the reduction of central foveal thickness and improvement of visual acuity was confirmed. The final BCVA of EZ intact group was better than EZ disrupted group. Conclusions CFT could be a useful prognostic factor after ERM surgery. It might be better to schedule surgery while the EZ remain intact. Key words: Idiopathic epiretinalmembrane; Optical coherence tomography; Visual acuity; Central foveal thickness; Ellipsoid zone