Prospective Retinal and Optic Nerve Vitrectomy Evaluation (PROVE) study: findings at 3 months

Rahul K Reddy,¹ Maziar Lalezary,¹ Stephen J Kim,¹ Jeffrey A Kammer,¹ Rachel W Kuchtey,¹ Edward F Cherney,¹ Franco M Recchia,² Karen M Joos,¹ Anita Agarwal,¹ Janice C Law<sup>1

1</sup>Department of Ophthalmology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA; ²Tennessee Retina, PC, Nashville, TN, USA


Background: The purpose of this paper is to report the 3-month findings of the Prospective Retinal and Optic Nerve Vitrectomy Evaluation (PROVE) study.
Methods: Eighty eyes of 40 participants undergoing vitrectomy were enrolled. Participants underwent baseline evaluation of the study (surgical) and fellow (control) eye that included: intraocular pressure, central corneal thickness, gonioscopy, cup-to-disc ratio measurement, color fundus and optic disc photography, automated perimetry, and optical coherence tomography of the macula and optic nerve. Evaluation was repeated at 3 months. Main outcome measures were changes in macula and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and intraocular pressure.
Results: All participants completed follow-up. Mean cup-to-disc ratio of study and fellow eyes at baseline was 0.43 ± 0.2 and 0.46 ± 0.2, respectively, and 13% of participants had undiagnosed narrow angles. There was no significant change in intraocular pressure, cup-to-disc ratio, or pattern standard deviation in study eyes compared with baseline or fellow eyes at 3 months. Vision improved in all study eyes at 3 months compared with baseline (P = 0.013), but remained significantly worse than fellow eyes (P < 0.001). Central subfield and temporal peripapillary RNFL thickness were significantly greater in eyes with epiretinal membrane (P < 0.05), and resolution after surgery correlated with visual improvement (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: The 3-month results do not indicate any increased risk for open-angle glaucoma but suggest that a relatively high percentage of eyes may be at risk of angle closure glaucoma. Temporal RNFL thickness and central subfield were increased in eyes with epiretinal membrane, and resolution correlated with degree of visual recovery.

Keywords: vitrectomy, open-angle glaucoma, intraocular pressure, epiretinal membrane, macular hole