Trends of glaucoma surgery at a tertiary referral glaucoma clinic in Alexandria University Hospital

Abstract

Context Glaucoma surgery aims to prevent visual loss from this blinding condition.Aim The aim of this research was to study the trends of glaucoma surgery in adults in a tertiary referral glaucoma centre in Alexandria University Hospital.Setting and design This is a retrospective study conducted in a tertiary referral glaucoma centre.Patients and methods Records of patients were retrospectively reviewed to study those undergoing surgery over a 10-year period from January 2007 to January 2017. The primary outcome measure was the intraocular pressure (IOP) − early postoperatively and at the last postoperative visit.Statistical method used The statistical methods were mean, SD, analysis of variance and post-hoc analysis.Results Sixty eyes of 51 patients underwent glaucoma surgery for uncontrolled IOP. Trabeculectomy was the most common procedure used, followed by synthetic Ahmed’s valve. Mean preoperative IOP ranged from 17 to 66 mmHg with a mean of 36.7±11.19 mmHg. Early postoperative pressure ranged from 0 to 40 mmHg with a mean of 13.6±8.77 mmHg. Last visit postoperative pressure ranged from 0 to 46 mmHg with a mean of 15.2±9.35 mmHg. Pressure decreased significantly both early and late postoperatively from the preoperative levels. There was no significant change of IOP between the early and last postoperative visits.Conclusion A marked decrease in mean IOP was achieved both early and late postoperatively. The issue of poor registry keeping together with incomplete data recording was outstanding and needs to be addressed by the governing bodies to allow more robust analysis and comparison of outcomes.