Is there a relationship between dopamine and rhegmatogenous retinal detachment?

Dopamine and its receptors have been widely studied in the neurological conditions and in the retina. In this study, we evaluated the possible role of dopamine in rhegmatogenous retinal detachment(RRD) by comparing the amount of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid(DOPAC), a surrogate index of retinal dopamin levels, in the vitreous sample of patients affected by RRD with those affected by macular pucker and vitre ous hemorrhage. Our results showed that significantly higher levels of DOPAC were found in the vitreou sample of patients affected by RRD compared with those affected by vitreous hemorrhage and macula pucker(P = 0.002). Specifically, no trace of the substance was found in vitreous hemorrhage and macula pucker samples. A slightly significant positive correlation was found among DOPAC and post-operativ best corrected visual acuity(r = 0.470, P = 0.049). No correlation was found between DOPAC and the day elapsed between diagnosis and surgery(P = 0.317). For the first time our findings suggest that DOPAC i released in RRD, but not in other retinal diseases such as vitreous hemorrhage and macular pucker. More over, we showed a correlation between visual acuity outcome and the amount of DOPAC in the vitreous This might have a potential, although still unknown, implication in the pathogenesis of the disease and/o in the associated photoreceptors loss. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Rome Tor Ver gata University Hospital(R.S.92.10) on September 24, 2010.