This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Patch graft failure may occur years after glaucoma drainage device implantation
Patch graft failure occurred in about 6% of glaucoma drainage implant surgeries using donor dura and sclera allografts after an average of 4 years, according to a study.
In the retrospective review, researchers examined medical records for 1,816 consecutive patients implanted with an Ahmed glaucoma valve (New World Medical) from June 1994 through December 2010.
Patch graft failure occurred in 109 cases (6%), including 44 of 695 procedures using donor dura allografts (6.3%) and 65 of 1,121 procedures using scleral patch grafts (5.8%). Failure occurred significantly later after dura vs. sclera allografts were used (P < .001).
“[Patch graft failure] may be the most frequent long-term complication after [Ahmed glaucoma valve] surgery. All eyes having [glaucoma drainage implant] surgery require long-term monitoring with periodic patch graft inspection to ensure conjunctival integrity,” the study authors said.
Study limitations included the lack of randomization, the retrospective design and the nonuniform use of mitomycin C, the authors said.