Central retinal artery occlusion on postoperative day one after vitreoretinal surgery

Abstract

Purpose: To report two cases of central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) associated with vitreoretinal surgery. Observations: Two patients underwent vitreoretinal surgery and were diagnosed with CRAO on postoperative day one. Both had received retrobulbar anesthetic blocks, followed by pars plana vitrectomy in one patient and scleral buckling in the other patient. Best-corrected visual acuity at last follow-up was 20/40 and 20/400. Conclusions/Importance: CRAO is a rare but serious adverse event after vitreoretinal surgery. The causative mechanism is not known in these patients.