Surgical Repair of Leaking Filtering Blebs Using Two Different Techniques

PURPOSE: To report the outcomes of two different surgical techniques for the repair of late onset bleb leakage following trabeculectomy. METHODS: This retrospective study includes 21 eyes of 20 patients with prior trabeculectomy and late-onset bleb leaks; 14 eyes underwent excision of the filtering bleb together with conjunctival advancement while in the other 7 eyes the bleb was retained but de-epithelialized before conjunctival advancement. Success was defined as resolution of leakage with no need for additional glaucoma surgery together with intraocular pressure (IOP) of 5-21 mmHg. Complete and qualified success was considered when the above mentioned was achieved without or with glaucoma medications, respectively. RESULTS: Mean duration of follow-up was 20.3±14.4 months. No significant difference was observed between the two groups in terms of complete, qualified and overall success rates (P>0.05), however more antiglaucoma medications were necessary in the bleb excision group (P=0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Both surgical techniques of bleb repair were comparably effective, however the bleb de-epithelialization technique was associated with less need for glaucoma medications after the procedure.