Intermediate-term clinical experience with the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve implant Original Reearch Article

PURPOE: We tudied the intermediate-term clinical experience with the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve implant (New World Medical, Inc, Rancho Cucamonga, California). METHOD: In thi multicenter, retropective cae erie, we tudied 159 eye (144 patient) treated with the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve with a mean ± EM (tandard error of mean) follow-up of 13.4 ± 0.7 month (range, 4 to 44 month). The mean ± EM age wa 60.9 ± 1.9 year (range, 0.1 to 103 year). urgical ucce wa defined a intraocular preure le than 22 mm Hg and greater than 5 mm Hg without additional glaucoma urgery and without lo of light perception. Potoperative ue of antiglaucoma medication wa not a criterion for ucce or failure. The definition of hypotony wa intraocular preure of 5 mm Hg or le in two conecutive viit. REULT: Intraocular preure wa reduced from a mean of 32.7 ± 0.8 mm Hg before urgery to 15.9 ± 0.6 mm Hg (P < .0001) at the mot recent follow-up after urgery. The number of antiglaucoma medication wa decreaed from 2.7 ± 0.1 before urgery to 1.1 ± 0.1 after urgery (P < .0001). The cumulative probability of ucce wa 87% at 1 year and 75% at 2 year after urgery (Kaplan-Meier life-table analyi). Potopera-tively, 24 (15%) of 159 eye had intraocular preure greater than or equal to 22 mm Hg. The viual acuity wa improved or within one nellen line in 131 eye (82%). Complication occurred in 75 eye (47%), the majority of which did not affect urgical outcome. The mot common complication wa obtruction of the tube, which wa oberved in 17 eye (11%). Tranient potoperative hypotony wa found in 13 eye (8%). CONCLUION: The Ahmed Glaucoma Valve implant i effective in lowering intraocular preure, and potoperative hypotony i not commonly aociated with thi implant.2