Controlled Cyclophotocoagulation with diode laser in refractory glaucoma and long term follow up at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Riyadh

ABSTRACT

To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of controlled contact transscleral diode laser Cyclophotocoagulation [COCO] procedure in reducing the Intraocular Pressure [IOP] among patients with refractory glaucoma. Thirty two patients [35 eyes] with refractory glaucoma in prospective clinical studies were treated with trans-sclera diode laser in a controlled manner. The energy power used was 5 W in adults and 3 W in children, exposure time was 0.5 s, a total of 16 shots were applied over ciliary body and four shots in each quadrant. Pre and postoperative IOP were measured at different postoperative visits. Snellen visual acuity, the number of anti-glaucoma medications and associated complications were also recorded. Student Ttest was used to compare the pre and post intervention lOPs, while Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test was used, to detect significance change in medication dependency. The mean [SD] follow up time was 80.2[ +/- 9.6] months, range [36-84] m, where the mean IOP was significantly reduced from 35.1 mm Hg [ +/- 10.7] before intervention to 18.8 mm Hg [ +/- 7.3] after intervention, in the final visit [P < 0.0001]. Complete success was achieved in seven eyes [20%], 22 eyes [62.8%] showed qualified successes and complete failure was reported in six eyes [17.1%]. The overall success rate was 82.8% [95% CI 70.4-95.3]. Visual acuity improved