Outpatient- and inpatient-based buckling surgery: a comparative study

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical outcomes of ambulatory buckling surgery, comparing outpatient- with inpatient-based surgery. METHODS: The authors performed a retrospective study of 80 consecutive cases of rhegmato genous retinal detachment from January 2009 to December 2011 treated by scleral buckling surgery. Two groups of patients were defined according to inpatient (group 1) or outpatient (group 2) surgery, and a comparison of several parameters between these two groups was performed. RESULTS: Of the 80 subjects in this study, the average age of group 1 (50 patients) was 49.7 years, and that of group 2 (30 patients) was 47.5 years. There were no statistically significant differences in the average logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution-visual acuity, the condition of the lens, or the presence of retinal lattice degeneration prior to the surgery between the groups. There were no statistically significant differences in the patterns of tear or retinal detachment or in surgical procedure between the groups. Comparing the best-corrected visual acuity after 6 months with that prior to the surgery, the changes in group 1 and group 2 were 0.26 and 0.31, respectively. The functional success rates of group 1 and group 2 after 6 months were 90% and 93%, respectively, and the anatomical success rates of group 1 and group 2 after 6 months were 94% and 96%, respectively, but these were also statistically insignificant. CONCLUSION: Hospitalization is not essential for buckling surgery in uncomplicated rhegmatogenous retinal detachment surgery.