Retina specialist: eye doctor said let pvd run its course and vitreous pull off completely. isnt laser a treatment to prevent detachment? any other?

Be Patient: A PVD is not a retinal tear. It can cause a tear. The laser is to treat, not prevent, the tear or retinal detachment. It takes roughly 6-8 weeks for the vitreous to detach fully. You will likely have intermittent floaters from now on. Flashes are a sign the retina is being tugged upon, but not necessarily torn. You may need laser treatment for a retinal tear or detachment-not a pvd.

Floaters: The vitreous is a jelly-like substance that fills the back part of the eye. Around the age of 60, it begins to liquify and form small floating strands (floaters). These strands may initially appear as small flashes of light or small black dots or wisps in the vision. If a dark curtain starts to cover the vision, then a retinal detachment may be occurring. Laser is used for retinal pathology.

PVD Prevention: When we first got our eye lasers many years ago, we tried to preventatively treat vitreous detachments. Unfortunately, we found that the laser beam, passing through the vitreous, caused it to shrink and pull harder, causing even larger detachments than would have been expected to occur. Therefore, we now let the detachment finish, and then treat the retina after the traction has been relaxed.