To demonstrate the posterior vitreous mobility following eye movements in patients forming macular holes, using an optical coherence tomography (OCT) eye-tracking system.

Prospective consecutive interventional case series.

Twenty-four eyes of 17 consecutive patients with idiopathic macular hole and the remaining fellow eyes were recruited. Following acquisition of baseline fundus scans, all patients were instructed to perform sets of standardized full-excursion vertical and horizontal eye movements. Immediately after each set of movements an OCT scan registered to the baseline fundus image was obtained using the eye-tracking system. Three images were then overlaid using picture-editing software, thereby documenting the changing configuration of the posterior vitreous as well as its position relative to the static retinal structures.

In patients with macular hole, 22 of 24 eyes (92%) had duplication of the posterior cortical vitreous in overlaid images. The extent of duplication (indicating mobility) was increased with increasing vitreous separation and as the stage of macular hole increased (75% in stage 0; 80% in stage 1; 100% in both stage 2 and stage 3). In all eyes in which there was a wavy configuration to the vitreous face, or in which there was a greater angle of vitreous insertion into the peripheral retina, vitreous mobility was evident on overlaid images (P = 2.7 × 10⁻¹⁷ and P = 1.7 × 10⁻¹³, respectively).

By dynamically evaluating patients, we offer potential mechanistic insights that may further implicate mobile vitreous and associated fluid currents in the pathogenesis and progression of macular holes.