Laser trabeculoplasty retreatment

Thirty-seven eyes of 30 patients classified as late treatment failures following 360 degrees of argon laser trabeculoplasty (ALT) underwent retreatment of the trabecular meshwork. Retreatment was considered successful if the intraocular pressure was maintained at 21 mm Hg or below and if the visual fields and optic nerve remained stable. By the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis the rates of success were: 100% at 3 months, 91% at 6 months, 77% at 9 months; 70% at 1 year, and 47% at 16 and 20 months. The mean decrease in intraocular pressure 1 month after retreatment was 6.5 +/- 4.9 mm Hg (from 23.9 to 17.5). Three patients followed for 3 years or longer had a mean decrease of -5.67 mm Hg. Repeat argon laser trabeculoplasty appears to be a reasonable treatment option for selected patients who are late failures after initial treatment.