Traumatic detachment following contusion results from a significant blow to the globe itself-usually by a high-speed missile such as a ball, fist, or foot. The retinal breaks are characteristic and are of two types: retinal dialyses (usually in the superior nasal or inferior temporal quadrant) and large, round, irregular breaks at the level of the equator (usually in the inferior temporal quadrant). The dialyses are associated with disinsertion of the vitreous base and splotchy depigmentation of the ora and pars plana, where the pigment epithelium has been torn free. The large round breaks in the inferior temporal quadrant are associated with gliosis and scarring in the surrounding retina, as well as disorganization of the underlying choroid. The mechanism causing these breaks has been well described by Weidenthal and Schepens (I966).