Primary Single-Plate Molteno Implant for Pediatric Glaucoma Associated with Sturge-Weber Syndrome

Purpose: to evaluate the efficacy and safety of primary single-plate molteno tubeimplantation for management of glaucoma in children with sturge-weber syndrome.methods: primary single-plate molteno tube implantation was performed in eyes ofpatients with sturge-weber syndrome aged <17 years. success was defined as intraocularpressure (iop) .22 mmhg with (relative success) or without (absolute success)antiglaucoma medications. intra- and postoperative complications were also evaluated.results: overall, nine eyes of seven patients with mean age of 9.6±3.7 (range 5-17) yearswere operated and followed for 32±4.7 (range 20-36) months. mean iop decreased from34.2±8.3 mmhg preoperatively to 21.2±7.3 mmhg at final follow up (p=0.012). meannumber of antiglaucoma medications decreased from 3.4±0.5 preoperatively to 2.2±1.3 at final follow up (p=0.058). the cumulative probability of relative success was 97.2%(95% confidence interval [ci], 91.8-100%) at 12 months, 78.0% (95%ci, 60.4-95.7%) at 24months and 43.3% (95%ci, 16.2-70.5%) at final follow up. two eyes achieved absolutesuccess during the first six months, however, at six months and later no eye achievedabsolute success. no intraoperative complication occurred; postoperative complicationsincluded choroidal effusion necessitating drainage in three eyes (33.3%), and cataractformation and retinal detachment, each in one eye (11%). at final follow up, visualacuity remained unchanged in five eyes and deteriorated in four eyes.conclusion: the outcomes of this small series revealed that primary single-platemolteno tube implantation appears to be associated with limited success and arelatively high complication rate in pediatric glaucoma associated with sturge-webersyndrome.