Five Years Outcome of Ahmed Glaucoma Valve Surgery in Refectory Glaucoma

Background and Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the success rate and complications of Ahmed Glaucoma Valve (AGV) insertion during a follow up of at least 5 years. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective case series study, patients with 5 years of follow up after AGV insertion were enrolled. Success was defined as intraocular pressure (IOP) < 21 mm Hg (criterion A) and IOP < 16 mm Hg (criterion B), with at least 20% reduction in IOP, either with no medication (complete success) or with no more than preoperative medication (qualified success). Cumulative success was defined as sum of qualified and complete success. Findings: This study included 40 eyes of 40 patients with mean age of 40.63± 22.91years, (range 1 to 88). Cumulative survival success rates were 90%, 73% at 1 and 5 years after surgery according to criterion A and 42%, 25% based on criterion B with the median survival time of 60 months and 22.36 months, respectively. Complications were observed in 4 eyes of 4 patients (10%) and included wound dehiscence, choroidal detachment, encapsulated bleb and lid retraction. There were not any early complications such as hypotonia or hyphema. Conclusion: The present study was one of the largest series that reported the long-term outcome of AGV implantation in Asian patients with refractory glaucoma, and showed the wide difference of success rate between criterion A and B.