Dexamethasone Intravitreal Implant After Vitrectomy For Epiretinal Membrane

Pars plana vitrectomy with membrane peeling has been used for years to successfully to treat
ERM (epiretinal membrane). However, despite successful surgery, approximately 10-30% of
patients may not experience any improvement in visual acuity (ref. 1-7). Macular causes of
unsatisfactory visual outcome following vitrectomy include persistent macular edema and
reoccurrence of epiretinal membrane (ref. 1-7). Concomitant administration of intravitreal
corticosteroids (triamcinolone acetonide) after pars plana vitrectomy and membrane peeling
for epiretinal membrane has been reported to speed up and improve the anatomic and
functional outcome (ref 8). Given that intravitreal triamcinolone has been reported to last
approximately 113 days ina post-vitrectomy eye (ref. 9); the investigators postulate that a
longer-acting corticosteroid such as Ozurdex could not only have the benefits of improved
anatomic and functional outcomes, but also a longer sustained effect.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Patients with idiopathic epiretinal membrane

- Preoperative visual acuity of snellen equivalent 20/32 or worse

Exclusion Criteria:

- History or presence of any of the following:

- uveitis

- macular hole

- previous vitreoretinal surgery

- any other retinal pathology that could affect anatomic or functional results

- Age Related Macular Degeneration

- Diabetic Retinopathy

- Diabetic Macular Edema

- Retinal Vein Occlusion

- Pre-existing Macular Disease