Mid-term results of patterned laser trabeculoplasty for uncontrolled ocular hypertension and primary open angle glaucoma

AIM: To describe the safety and efficacy of patterned laser trabeculoplasty (PLT) as an adjunctive treatment in primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) and ocular hypertension (OHT) after 18-month follow-up in Hispanic population. METHODS: A single-center, retrospective study was conducted. All patients with OHT or POAG undergoing PLT from June 2016 to August 2016 were included in the study. Investigated parameters were intraocular pressure (IOP), the number of IOP-lowering medications, best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), laser parameters and postoperative adverse events. Primary efficacy outcome measures were the proportion of eyes achieving an IOP reduction >= 20% at 18mo versus baseline medicated IOP or a reduction in the number of medications while maintaining lOP values. RESULTS: From 40 PLT-treated eyes (mean baseline IOP 20.3 +/- 1.7 mm Hg), 24 patients were analyzed (age 63.4 +/- 7.3y). The mean IOP reductions from baseline across visits (months 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18) ranged from 14.1% to 20.8%. Success rate after 18-month follow-up was 61.7% with a mean IOP of 16 +/- 3.2 mm Hg (P<0.001). The number of glaucoma IOP-lowering medications per eye (preoperative 2.1 +/- 1.1 and postoperative 2.3 +/- 1.1, P=0.86) and the mean BCVA (preoperative 0.10 +/- 0.22 and postoperative 0.11 +/- 0.22 logMAR, P=0.42) remained stable. Adverse events comprised transitory IOP spikes in 4 eyes (10%) and peripheral anterior synechiae in 7 eyes (17.5%). CONCLUSION: Mid-term results of PLT show that this procedure may be an efficacious and safe technique to approach medically uncontrolled OHT or POAG patients.