Background: The efficacy of Baerveldt implant (Pharmacia & Upjohn, Inc., Kalamazoo, Mich.) surgery in the treatment of advanced childhood glaucoma is unknown.
Methods: We reviewed the results of 23 consecutive 350 mm Baerveldt implants in 20 eyes of 17 children. Results were classified as follows: (1) success; no further reoperation, no decrease in vision, and intraocular pressure at last follow-up less than 21 mm Hg with no medications; (2) qualified success; medication necessary to bring intraocular pressure to less than 21 mm Hg or complication not associated with tube failure; and (3) failure; intraocular pressure >20 mm Hg, tube failure complication or reoperation causing tube removal, phthisis, or enucleation.
Results: Original glaucoma types were bilateral aphakic (five), unilateral aphakic or persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous (four), primary infantile (four), juvenile (three), secondary(two), Peter syndrome (one), and Lowe syndrome (one). Patients had undergone a mean of 2.8 previous intraocular procedures. Mean preoperative intraocular pressure was 33.6 mm Hg; average number of preoperative glaucoma medications was 3.0. Mean follow-up was 19 months (range, 6 to 32 months). Eight procedures were considered successful (mean intraocular pressure 15.5 mm Hg), six were qualified successes (mean number of medications 0.8; mean intraocular pressure 16 mm Hg), and nine failed. Two eyes in the qualified success group do not have useful vision as a result of complications. Complications included retinal detachment (five), corneal decompensation (five), corneal graft rejection in five of six grafts; dislocated tubes (three), and recurrent uveitis (two). One of these eyes is phthisic and one has been enucleated. Only two of nine procedures in eyes with a history of one or no previous intraocular operations failed,whereas seven of 13 procedures in eyes with a history of three or more previous procedures failed. Only seven of 13 procedures in aphakic eyes were successes or qualified successes, whereas seven of 10 procedures in phakic eyes had good results.
Conclusion: Baerveldt implants can produce good short-term results, especially in phakic eyes. Aphakic eyes and eyes that have undergone multiple procedures are at a much higher risk for devastating complications.