“With time, the vitreous can spontaneously separate entirely from the inner retina, and usually without incident,” Dr. “Today, with SD-OCT, it is very easy to see that the posterior vitreous cortex stays partially detached from the fovea for long periods without causing anatomic or visual disturbance and far before the occurrence of a complete vitreous detachment or complications due to PVD,” he said. In that paper, it was reported that in individuals younger than age 50, 60% of eyes will have some partial PVD. VMA-a perifoveal vitreous detachment (PVD) defined by anatomic features detected with OCT-was first described by Uchino et al.

“Rather, it should consider the evolution of the traction, worsening of foveal anomalies, and the presence of worsening of visual symptoms,” he explained. However, further studies with long-term, follow-up are needed to understand the natural history of VMA/VMT in terms of what proportion of eyes follow these different pathways of evolution.Ĭonsidering the variable history, the indication for treatment of VMT should not be based on only a single OCT, according to Dr. Mild VMT can spontaneously release, go on to persistent VMT with an epiretinal membrane (ERM) that seals the vitreous to the retinal surface, or evolve into a macular hole. Gaudric said probably only a minority of eyes with VMA go on to develop mild VMT. Noting that asymptomatic vitreomacular adhesion (VMA)-the predecessor to VMT-is a common finding, Dr. However, the risk of progression of these early lesions to clinically significant VMT is not well known, said Alain Gaudric, MD, professor and chairman, Department of Ophthalmology, Lariboisière Hospital, University of Paris Diderot, Paris. Paris-Detecting very minor signs of vitreomacular traction (VMT) is now possible, thanks to the advent of spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). The goal is to break the adhesion so that the vitreous no longer pulls on the macula.Take-home message: More information is needed to understand the natural history of vitreomacular adhesion/vitreomacular traction and risk of progression to clinically significant vitreomacular traction. If things become serious, you have treatment options. If your eye doctor says you have VMA but your symptoms aren’t severe, they may want to wait and see if your vision gets better by itself.

The test uses light to take pictures of your retina and map the layers of your eye.

Part of that will be something called optical coherence tomography (OCT). Your doctor will give you special eye drops to dilate your pupils and a complete eye exam. If any of these are happening, see your eye doctor right away. You also could see things smaller than they actually are, which is called micropsia.You could have wavy vision, or things could look distorted.It rarely causes a permanent loss of sight. It can lead to distorted or blurry vision. It’s more likely to happen to women than men and to people who are nearsighted. VMA usually happens in folks older than 50. When that happens, it can affect vision - what doctors call symptomatic VMA. It can hold on so strongly, it pulls on the macula (your eye doctor may call this “traction”). Sometimes the jelly doesn’t completely separate. That’s the light-sensitive tissue on the back of your eye that includes the macula. It eventually pulls away from the retina. That’s mainly because of age and regular wear and tear. It’s considered the most sensitive part of the retina.Īs we grow older, the jelly in our eyes begins to shrink. The macula is important in seeing fine details, such as when you're reading. The other is the macula, a small area on the retina responsible for the central part of your field of vision. One is the vitreous, or the “jelly” part that fills the eyeball. Vitreomacular adhesion (VMA) can be serious, but it’s treatable.

Vmt retina