[Clinical results of encapsulated bleb removal after Ahmed glaucoma valve implants]

In refractory glaucoma, surgical intervention is required which in most cases aims at artificially increasing the drainage of aqueous humor from the eye. One surgical option used with increasing frequency is the implantation of episcleral glaucoma drainage devices (GDD). The clinical success of such devices is often limited by excessive wound healing and scar formation around the base plate of the implant. In severe cases, which seem to occur most frequently in pediatric patients, the rapid formation of a thick, water-impervious fibrotic capsule within months after initial implantation leads to diminished aqueous resorption and an increase in intraocular pressure to presurgical values. Often additional surgical interventions become necessary. Excision of the fibrotic tissue around the implant may help to salvage function and might be an alternative to the more commonly practiced implantation of an additional GDD. In the case series presented here the surgical method of capsular revision is described and the clinical outcome in 11 eyes from 10 patients is reported.