Transconjunctival suturing of the scleral flap for overfiltration with hypotony maculopathy after trabeculectomy

Abstract

Objective: To assess the efficacy of transconjunctival suturing of the scleral flap in improving hypotony maculopathy resulting from overfiltration after trabeculectomy. Design: Retrospective review. Participants: 35 eyes of 33 patients. Methods: Patients underwent transconjunctival scleral flap suturing for hypotony maculopathy following trabeculectomy using mitomycin C. The scleral flap was sutured through the conjunctiva as an outpatient clinic procedure using a spatulated needle with a 10-0 nylon suture. Results: The average age of the patients was 67.5 (SD 4.80, range 39–83) years, and 52% patients were male. The average duration of hypotony prior to transconjunctival suturing of the flap was 108.0 (SD 68.3) days. The median intraocular pressure (IOP) before suturing was 3 mm Hg, and the median IOP 6 months after the procedure was 9 mm Hg ( p < 0.0001). The median best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) before transconjunctival suturing of the scleral flap was 20/100, and the median BCVA 6 months after the procedure was 20/30 ( p < 0.0001). Compared with visual acuity before suturing the average gain in BCVA was 4.9 (SD 0.8) lines. Conclusions: Transconjunctival suturing of the trabeculectomy scleral flap is an effective treatment to raise IOP and improve visual loss from hypotony maculopathy after trabeculectomy with overfiltering blebs.