Purpose of the study: The purpose of the study was to report and evaluate outcomes of trabeculectomy with use of a subconjunctival biodegradable collagen matrix implant.
Patients and methods: Retrospective review of trabeculectomy with Ologen implant of 65 eyes of 58 patients by the same surgeon from October, 2011 to October, 2014. Exclusion criteria were <6 months of follow-up after surgery, and uveitic or neovascular glaucoma. Demographic characteristics of the study population, visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), glaucoma medications, bleb characteristics, and early and late postoperative complications were recorded. Complete and qualified IOP control success, ≤15 and ≤18 mm Hg, was calculated with the Kaplan-Meier analysis.
Results: The mean age of the patients in the study was 65.9±15.1 years. IOP was reduced from a mean of 21.4±9.2 to 12.3±3.7 mm Hg at the last follow-up visit (P<0.0001). The number of IOP-lowering medications per eye was reduced from a mean of 1.86 preoperatively to 0.2 at the last follow-up visit (P<0.0001). The Kaplan-Meier survival curves of complete success for IOP≤15 mm Hg and ≤18 mm Hg were 47.2% and 62.9%, respectively, at 36 months. Postoperative complications occurred in 15% of the eyes, with bleb leakage (6%) and hypotony (5%), which were resolved medically. At the last postoperative visit, blebs were described as normal (86.4%), flat (9.1%), and polycystic (4.5%).
Conclusions: Trabeculectomy surgeries with Ologen performed by the same surgeon were effective in lowering IOP with a low complication rate at mid-term follow-up.