Trends of Pars Plana Vitrectomy Rates in South Korea: A Nationwide Cohort Study

PURPOSE: To assess the trends in pars plana vitrectomy surgery rates and factors affecting rate change between 2002 and 2013 in South Korea. METHODS: Data from National Health Insurance Service-National Sample Cohort 2002–2013, which represents 1,025,340 samples with a sampling rate of 2.2% from the total eligible Korean population, was analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 3,816 vitrectomy procedures were performed (male, 2,010; female, 1,806) from 2002 to 2013. Annual rates of vitrectomy increased from 15.1 (in 2002) to 49.4 (in 2013) per 100,000 individuals, and this trend was prominent in those aged 60 years or older. As for the anesthetic method, vitrectomy under local anesthesia increased more prominently than vitrectomy under general anesthesia. The most common diagnoses associated with vitrectomy were diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachment, epiretinal membrane, and macular hole. CONCLUSIONS: The average annual rate of vitrectomy surgery was 31.5 per 100,000 between 2002 and 2013, and the rate has steadily increased.