Different surgical modalities for management of uveitic glaucoma: 2 year comparative study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to compare outcome of 3 different surgical modalities for management of uveitic glaucoma (UG). METHODS: This is a prospective comparative study, carried out on a cohort of 105 eyes (105 patients) with UG of different aetiologies. Patients were randomly allocated to group A (trabeculectomy), group B (Ahmed glaucoma valve; AGV) or group C (Trans-scleral diode laser cyclophotocoagulation, TDLC). Postoperatively, all patients were followed up for 2 years. Humphrey SITA standard perimetry was done 6, 12 and 24 months. Complete success was defined as IOP ≤ 21 mmHg and relative decrease of ≥20%, without additional glaucoma surgery or antiglaucoma medication, qualified success as IOP ≤ 21 mmHg and additional reduction of ≥20% in IOP, without additional glaucoma surgery, but with topical medications, while failure was considered when IOP was not controlled with topical medications and the patient needed additional surgery, or hypotony for ≥2 months. RESULTS: At first, IOP was significantly lower with AGV and significantly higher with TDLC, with significant drop and percentage drop between the three groups. Starting from the 6th month postoperatively till the end of the 2-year period, there was no statistically significant difference between the 3 groups. There was no significant difference between the three groups, with complete success achieved in 60% with trabeculectomy, 68.6% with AGV and 62.9% with TDLC. There was significant difference for inflammatory cells grading; 65.7% of eyes with trabeculectomy had 2+ cells, 57% with AGV had 0 cells while 45.7% with TDLC had 1+ cells. CONCLUSION: The three surgical modalities had the same IOP-lowering effect on the long run, with complete success rate that is close enough between them, with AGV revealing the least inflammation, which might be the cause of more stable VF with Ahmed's valve proving its superiority to the other 2 techniques for inflammatory glaucoma.

Various modalities for management of secondary angle closure neovascular glaucoma in diabetic eyes: 1-year comparative study.

PURPOSE: To compare outcome of 4 methods for management of angle closure neovascular glaucoma (NVG) in diabetic eyes. METHODS: Prospective comparative study, on 40 eyes (40 patients) with NVG. Patients were randomly assigned to group A (Trabeculectomy with MMC), B (Ahmed valve), C (Ex-Press Minishunt with MMC) or D (Diode cyclophotocoagulation). Patients were followed regularly for 1 year. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: intraocular pressure (IOP), best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), central foveal thickness (CFT), intraoperative bleeding, postoperative complications and 2ry intervention. RESULTS: Preoperative data were not significantly different between 4 groups. Postoperatively, there was significant drop in IOP in each group at each follow-up. Ahmed valve group showed least mean postoperative IOP and highest mean drop of the IOP at 1 day and 1 week postoperatively, while Ex-Press minishunt group had least mean postoperative IOP at 1 month and 3 months postoperatively. At 6 months and 1 year, there was no significant difference between 4 groups. BCVA was not significantly different between 4 groups. At 1 year, CFT was significantly lower in each of the 4 groups, and it was significantly the least in group A and highest in group D. Highest intraoperative bleeding was observed with trabeculectomy. Success rate was not significantly different among the 4 groups. CONCLUSION: The 4 management options showed a significant long-term effect on IOP, and on long-terms there was no significant difference between them for IOP and BCVA. Trabeculectomy showed highest incidence of intraoperative bleeding, while cyclophotocoagulation showed none.

Change in Ophthalmology Practice during COVID-19 Pandemic: Egyptian Perspective.

PURPOSE: To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ophthalmology practice in the Cairo metropolitan area. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional observational analytic study among ophthalmologists practicing in different hospitals in the Cairo metropolitan area. The data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire covering general measures taken during practice. RESULTS: The questionnaire was sent to 250 ophthalmologists, with an 82% response rate. Most of the participants were concerned about the economic impact of the pandemic, as there is a 60-80% reduction in the flow of patients with a consequent 80-100% reduction in surgical cases. Most of the participants have access to personal protective equipment, and the safety protocols are followed, especially by the older ophthalmologists. Thus, the surgeons are willing to perform elective surgeries, adhering to strict safety protocols (70.8, 42.6, and 18.8% of the refractive surgeons, corneal surgeons, and retinal surgeons, respectively; p = 0.00). Furthermore, 63.9% of the participants, especially the young ophthalmologists, are willing to see COVID-19 patients and operate on them if needed. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic could go on for months or even years with a significant impact on ophthalmology practice. Trying to keep a balance between safety and economic burden, the majority of ophthalmologists are willing to see elective patients and urgently operate on a COVID-19 patient, under adherence to the safety protocols.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Young Ophthalmologists in Cairo University Hospitals.

PURPOSE: To assess the concerns of the residents and young ophthalmologists as well as the change in their practice during the COVID era. DESIGN: This is an cross-sectional study. METHODS: A questionnaire was directed to the young Ophthalmologists of Ophthalmology department in Cairo University hospitals. The primary outcome measures were the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on ophthalmology practice. RESULTS: Seventy-nine young Ophthalmologists responded to the questionnaire, with an age ranging from 24 to 36 years of age of which 57% were females. They all practiced Ophthalmology from less than one year up to 9 years long, with 55.8% of them feeling unlucky starting ophthalmic practice during this era, 7.6% are extremely anxious regarding their psychological concern about the pandemic, and some feel they need psychological assessment especially those with 1-3 years duration of practice (41.2%) (p = .011) , especially females (82.4%, p = .015 ). As for access to PPE, 94.9% are wearing masks in the clinic, but only 8.9% of patients are wearing masks. Before this lockdown, 16.7% of the enrolled candidates attended on line lectures and webinars, but since then, this has significantly surged to 80.5% (p < .001) . CONCLUSION: Due to COVID-19 pandemic, as with everybody else, our young ophthalmologists have been affected on many different levels; psychologically, education and practice levels.

Trabeculectomy with Ologen versus Mitomycin C in Juvenile Open-Angle Glaucoma: A 1-Year Study.

BACKGROUND: We assessed bleb morphology and the intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering effect of trabeculectomy with ologen compared to mitomycin C (MMC) in juvenile open-angle glaucoma (JOAG). METHODS: This is a prospective interventional comparative study conducted on 40 eyes (20 patients) with medically uncontrolled JOAG, randomly operating one eye for trabeculectomy with ologen (group A: 20 eyes) and the other with MMC (group B: 20 eyes). IOP measurement, SITA standard perimetry, and spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) for retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness were all done pre- and postoperatively. Postoperative blebs were assessed clinically using the Moorfields bleb grading system (MBGS) and anterior segment OCT (AS-OCT). All patients were examined for up to 1 year postoperatively. RESULTS: The mean postoperative IOP was statistically significantly lower than the mean preoperative IOP at each follow-up in each group. At 1 year, the mean postoperative IOP was significantly lower in group A. According to the MBGS, blebs with an ologen implant showed significantly better scoring than those with MMC. AS-OCT showed that ologen-induced blebs had significantly more fluid-filled spaces, cleavage planes, and less fibrosis. CONCLUSION: Ologen resulted in a lower long-term postoperative IOP, a better bleb morphology, and fewer complications. Our results suggest that ologen may be a useful alternative to MMC in JOAG.