Background: The Toxocara organism may cause direct injury to the eye, but most commonly, host inflammatory reactions are responsible for the resulting compromise. The inflammatory response created by the ocular involvement may result in epiretinal membrane formation, tractional or combined tractional-rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. The treatment of choice is pars plana vitrectomy (PPV), which also has diagnostic significance.
Methods: We report a pediatric case in which PPV recovered the Toxocara canis organism. For the total tractional retinal detachment diagnosed after the cataract surgery, PPV, preretinal and subretinal membrane peeling, 180 degrees retinotomy, silicone oil injection were performed. The fibrous membrane specimen obtained during PPV recovered the Toxocara canis organism.
Results: The intense postoperative inflammatory reaction had to be managed surgically, also. Retinal reattachment was achieved with subsequent improvement of the visual acuity.
Conclusion: The importance of vitreous biopsy examination following PPV, in eyes in which etiology is uncertain and the intense antiinflammatory therapy applied within and following vitreoretinal surgery is emphasized.