Question: Dear Doctor,

I have been diagnosed epiretinal membrane (right eye) in early Feb this year and has progressed quite rapidly. According to my latest OCT in end March, my fovea thickness is 397 as compared to 333 in early Feb. I will soon proceed to surgery. I have some questions and wish to seek expert advice –



1. I have consulted two doctors. The first one said I can choose complete or partial vitrectomy. He said complete vitrectomy lead to cataract faster, partial vitrectomy can delay cataract but I will have some floaters left. But 2nd doctor advised complete vitrectomy. Which option is more advisable? How to choose? What factors to consider?



2.. My doctor said complete vitrectomy may lead to increase in intraocular pressure in the longer term? Is this risk lower if I choose partial vitrectomy?



3. For the prognosis after surgery, what is the extent of improvement can I expect over time, in terms of visual acuity and the reduction of metamorphopsia? Will my vision be worse than before surgery in the initial period right after surgery? When will I start to see notable improvement in vision ?



4. Besides accelerated cataract, any long term complications/risks of other eye diseases (e.g. glaucoma, retinal detachment, macular hole, macular degeneration or other eye disease) after doing the ERM surgery?



Thanks in advance for your expert advice.