Visual quality of life after macular hole surgery: outcome and predictive factors

Background: In the present study we evaluated the functional
success after macular hole surgery in correlation to visual quality
of life and looked for predictive factors determining surgical
success.Methods: Fifty-nine patients that underwent pars plana
vitrectomy for idiopathic macular hole were included. Follow-up
visits were performed in regular intervals after surgery and
included a clinical examination, optical coherence tomography (OCT)
and measurement of visual acuity. To assess the visual quality of
life patients filled out the National Eye Institute 25-item Visual
Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25) before and three months and one
year after surgery.Results: Macular hole closure was achieved in 57
of 59 patients (97%). Mean visual acuity increased from 20/100
preoperatively to 20/34 one year after surgery (p = 0.02). Despite
good visual acuity (20/27) in the fellow eye, visual quality of
life (VFQ composite score) rose from 75.9 ± 14.4 (SD) to 81.5 ±
14.2 one year after surgery (p