Panos G. Christakis

TL;DR: Both implants were effective in reducing IOP and the need for glaucoma medications and the Baerveldt group had a lower failure rate and a lower IOP on fewer medications than the Ahmed group, but had a small risk of hypotony that was not seen in the Ahmed Group.

TL;DR: The Ahmed Versus Baerveldt (AVB) study as discussed by the authors reported the 1-year treatment outcomes of the AVB study, where patients with uncontrolled glaucoma refractory to medicinal, laser, and surgical therapy were randomized to undergo implantation of an Ahmed-FP7 valve (New World Medical, Inc., Rancho Cucamonga, CA) or a Baervesldt-350 implant (Abbott Medical Optics, Inc, Santa Ana, CA), to be followed for 5 years.

TL;DR: The Baerveldt group had a lower failure rate, lower rate of de novo glaucoma surgery, and lower mean IOP on fewer medications than the Ahmed group.

TL;DR: Aqueous drainage devices are being increasingly used for glaucoma refractory to conventional treatment, and the AVB Study compares the 2 most commonly implanted devices, and there were a similar number of intraoperative complications for both devices.

TL;DR: The torsional machine outperformed the transversal and longitudinal machines, with a lower mean needle time, less chatter, and improved followability, which corresponded to less corneal edema 1 day postoperatively and better visual acuity.