

Sometimes an air or gas bubble is placed in the eye to help the retina heal or to seal any tears or holes. During surgery, your ophthalmologist uses microsurgery instruments to remove the wrinkled tissue on your macula and to remove the vitreous gel that may be pulling on the macula. The surgery is usually performed in an operating room. Eyedrops, medicines or laser surgery do not improve visionįor more severe symptoms, a surgery called vitrectomy is recommended. Updating your eyeglass prescription or wearing bifocals may improve vision. HOW CAN WE DIAGNOSE THE MACULAR PUCKER?įor mild symptoms of macular pucker, you may not need treatment. A macular pucker does not affect your side (peripheral) vision.įor most people with macular pucker, their vision remains stable and does not worsen over time. Vision loss can vary from none to severe vision loss, although severe vision loss is uncommon. Usually macular pucker affects one eye, although it may affect the other eye later. Symptoms of macular pucker range from mild to severe. There may be a gray or cloudy area in the center of your vision, or perhaps even a blind spot. You may have difficulty seeing fine detail and reading small print. With a macular pucker, you may notice that your central vision is blurry or mildly distorted, and straight lines can appear wavy. Disorders of the blood vessels in the retina, such as diabetic retinopathy.Severe trauma to the eye (from surgery or injury) and.Inflammation (swelling) inside the eye.Other eye conditions associated with macular pucker include: Sometimes the scar tissue can warp and contract, causing the retina to wrinkle or bulge. As the vitreous pulls away, scar tissue may develop on the macula. WHAT ARE THE EPIRETINAL (MACULAR PUCKER) CAUSES?Īs you age, the vitreous - the clear, gel-like substance that fills the middle of your eye - begins to shrink and pull away from the retina. Sometimes the scar tissue can warp and contract, causing the retina to wrinkle or become swollen or distorted. Damage to your macula causes blurred central vision, making it difficult to perform tasks such as reading small print or threading a needle.Īs we grow older, the thick vitreous gel in the middle of our eyes begins to shrink and pull away from the macula. As light rays enter your eye, the retina converts the rays into signals, which are sent through the optic nerve to your brain where they are recognized as images. The retina is a layer of light-sensing cells lining the back of your eye. The macula is the small area at the center of the eye’s retina that allows you to see fine details clearly.

A macular pucker (also called an epiretinal membrane) that grows on the surface of the retina, particularly the macula, which is the part of your eye responsible for detailed, central vision.
