Descemet’s Membrane Detachment: An Intraoperative Complication in Cataract Surgery with Phacoemulsification

Descemet’s membrane detachment (DMD) is a complication fundamentally associated with cataract surgery, the subclinical presentation being higher than expected. There are many varied treatments, from simple observation to penetrating keratoplasty. We present a case report of a 78-year-old male patient, without comorbidities, who underwent cataract surgery with phacoemulsification plus intraocular lens implantation in the capsular bag of the left eye. During the intraoperative procedure, he presented a DMD (height of 350 um and length of 3 mm in Zone 1 according to the HELP algorithm), managed with adaptive viscoelastic under the soft-shell technique in the same operative act, injection of iso-expansile SF6 (20%) intracameral plus postural positioning for 2 hours carried out 48 hours after surgery plus intensive topical treatment with hypertonic sodium chloride and steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. At 72 hours after the operation of the application of the gas bubble, he presented with a transparent cornea and a best-corrected visual acuity of 20/80, which finally for his ophthalmological control at 8 weeks presented definitive resolution of the case in the AS-OCT and with a BCVA of 20/30.