Human subretinal fluid. Its cellular and subcellular components
L. Feeney, R. P. Burns and R. M. Mixon
A light and electron microscopical study of subretinal fluid removed at
surgery for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment showed a heterogeneity of
cell types originating from the neural retina, pigment epithelium, and
wandering cells of the blood. Subcellular organelles sedimenting in the
centrifuged pellets could be identified as to cell of origin, health of the
parent cell, and time since cell rupture. Acellular specimens were typical
of angiomatous detachments or long-standing rhegmatogenous detachments.
Because various mechanisms of cellular pathophysiology contribute to the
destructive and reparative processes during retina detachment, the
cytologic analysis of subretinal fluid becomes a useful tool in
understanding the biological processes that affect visual recovery or
impairment after successful retinal detachment surgery.
