Abstract
Purpose:
To report the incidence and risk factors of glaucoma following congenital cataract surgery at Pediatric Ophthalmic Hospital “Bambino Gesù” of Rome.
Methods:
The records of 1020 patients underwent cataract surgery at our unit between 1992 and 2010 either with or without intraocular lens implantation, were retrospectively assessed. The development of glaucoma was defined as IOP > 22mmHg, increased corneal diameter,increased cup/disc ratio and reduction of anterior chamber depth. Age at surgery, unilateral or bilateral cataract, intraocular lens implantation and posterior capsulotomy were analyzed as potential risk factors.
Results:
641 patients with bilateral cataract and 379 with unilateral cataract underwent cataract extraction. The mean follow up was 97 months(range 24-240 months).Secondary glaucoma was diagnosed in 148 eyes(9.1%), after a mean period of 4.3 years(range 2 months-8 years). 5%(n=58) of eyes with intraocular lens implantation and 18.1%(n=90) of aphakic eyes developed glaucoma after congenital cataract surgery(p<0.05).The average age at surgery of patients who developed glaucoma was 1.7 months, significantly lower than patients who did not develop the disease(p<0.05). No differences were found between eyes with monolateral or bilateral cataract at diagnosis.
Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that early age is a risk factor for the development of glaucoma; intraocular lens implantation is associated with a significant lower rate of glaucoma.