Abstract
Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) is fairly common and one of
the main causes of blindness if left untreated. In spite of the high anatomical success
rate for retinal detachment, visual recovery is lagging. Microvascular changes in the
macular area might play a role in determining poor visual outcomes. Methods: Optical
coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCT-A) technologies have been
used to determine the relationship between microvascular macular changes and visual
acuity. Results: RRD seems to alter microcirculatory anatomy in the macular area by
increasing the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) and diminishing the vascular density (VD)
of the superficial, deep and choroidal capillary plexuses. More so if the macula is
detached, these changes appear to recover with time and might be correlated with
postoperative visual acuity, but apparently do not entirely explain the sometimes-unexpected poor visual results.