Correlation between the outcome of vitrectomy for proliferative diabetic retinopathy and erythrocyte hematocrit level and platelet function

We investigated whether biomarkers such as red blood cell hematocrit (Hct), platelet count (PLT), mean platelet volume (MPV), and platelet distribution width (PDW) are useful as prognostic indicators of postoperative macular edema (ME) after vitrectomy for proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). Forty-eight eyes of 43 patients with PDR who underwent vitrectomy between January 2018 and May 2020 were analyzed retrospectively. We divided them into two groups according to whether treatment was required for postoperative ME and compared the relationship between Hct, PLT, MPV, and PDW and the onset of postoperative ME. The group that received postoperative treatment (group T) comprised 13 eyes of 12 patients, and the group that did not (group N) comprised 35 eyes of 32 patients. The age (years) was 53.2 ± 9.9 in group T and 60.0 ± 11.4 in group N. When the Wilcoxon rank-sum test, Pearson chi-square test, and Fisher's exact test were performed for comparison between groups, significant differences were found in Hct (p = 0.04). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed, and a significant difference was found in Hct (< 0.01). These results suggest that Hct might be useful as a predictor of ME after PDR surgery.