Tube-shunt Surgery versus Neodymium:YAG Cyclophotocoagulation in the Management of Neovascular Glaucoma

Objective: To determine the relative effectiveness of neodymium:YAG (Nd:YAG) cyclophotocoagulation (CPC) and tube-shunt surgery on intraocular pressure (IOP) control in eyes with neovascular glaucoma (NVG). Design: Retrospective, case-by-case matched, comparative group study. Participants: Twenty-four patients with NVG treated with noncontact Nd:YAG-CPC were matched with 24 patients who underwent tube-shunt surgery. Matching criteria included the underlying disorder causing angle neovascularization, the lens status, and patient's age. Interventions: Tube-shunt surgery or Nd:YAG-CPC. Main Outcome Measure: Postoperative IOP (IOP ≥ 6 and ≤ 25 mmHg), visual acuity, and presence of any postoperative complications. Results: Satisfactory IOP control (IOP ≤ 25 mmHg and ≥ 6 mmHg) was achieved in 9 eyes (37.5%) treated with Nd:YAG-CPC compared with 16 eyes (66.7%) receiving a tube-shunt procedure (P = 0.04) over a mean follow-up of 16.9 ± 14.6 and 15.2 ± 11.8 months, respectively. In the matched pairs in both groups that had nonequivalent outcomes, the proportions with persistently high IOP or hypotony were both greater in the CPC group than in the tube-shunt group. The cumulative proportion of failure in the CPC group was 20.8% at 6 months, 35.4% at 1 year, and 71.2% at 3 years postoperatively. In the tube-shunt group, the cumulative proportions of failure at 6 months and 1 year were close to those in the CPC group (12.5% and 29.2%, respectively), but lower 3 years after surgery (43.3%). Eleven eyes (45.8%) in the CPC group lost light perception versus four eyes (16.7%) in the tube-shunt group. Complication rate was higher in the tube-shunt group. Conclusions: This study suggests that, in the management of NVG, tube-shunt surgery more frequently controls IOP in a satisfactory range, with less hypotony and less visual loss, than noncontact Nd:YAG-CPC.