Purpose: To study the incidence, characteristics, and results of retinal detachment (RD) after cataract surgery with a capsule complication.
Setting: Ten ophthalmic surgery departments in Sweden.
Methods: In this case-control study, data on cataract surgery cases with a capsule complication (study group) or with no complication (control group) in 2003 were extracted from the Swedish National Cataract Register. Patients with RD during a 3-year follow-up were identified.
Results: The study group comprised 324 patients and the control group, 331 patients. Retinal detachment occurred in 13 study group patients, for a 3-year incidence of 4.0%. In the control group, 1 patient (0.3%) had RD. Multivariate analysis showed an adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 14.8 for RD after capsule complication (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.9-114; P = .01). Subgroup analysis of the study group using a binary logistic regression model showed that male sex (OR, 8.5; 95% CI, 1.7-43.8; P = .001) and lens remnants in the vitreous (OR, 14.4; 95% CI 2.6-78.8; P = .002) were additional risk factors. Axial myopia was significantly associated with an increased risk as a single factor but not as a multiple factor. In general, the final visual outcome for RD after a capsule complication was poor; 3 eyes had a visual acuity of 0.50 or better. Eight eyes (62%) had a final visual acuity worse than 0.10 and 6 eyes, 0.02 or worse.
Conclusions: The risk for RD after cataract surgery increased significantly when a capsule complication occurred, leading to poor final visual acuity in most cases.