Objective To investigate the effect of idiopathic macular hole(IMH) staging on the recovery of visual function after Par plana vitrectomy.Methods Twenty-two patients with idiopathic macular hole of stage two,stage three and stage four undergoing vitrectomy with internal limiting membrane peeling(ILMP) were selected.The clinical data of patients were observed.The stage and configuration of macular hole were examined by OCT.The best corrected visual acuity(BCVA) before and after vitrectomy were also measured.Results Twenty-two patients were reached anatomic closure after operation,20 patients'(91%) postoperative visual acuity improved,2 cases'(9%) preoperative visual acuity kept invariably,no vision decreased.No patient had significant postoperative complications.The postoperative BCVA was better than preoperative BCVA(P0.01).Postoperative BCVA positively correlated with the stage of preoperative hole(P0.05) by rank correlation analysis.Conclusion Vitrectomy with ILMP is an effective method to cure the IMH.It would be better for IMH patients after stage 2 to do operation earlier.