Use of Nd:YAG laser to recanalize occluded Cypass Micro-Stent in the early post-operative period

PURPOSE: To report the first case of Neodymium Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Nd:YAG) laser use to recanalize a CyPass occluded with a clot in the early postoperative follow-up. OBSERVATIONS: A 66 year-old woman with primary open angle glaucoma and cataract received combined cataract surgery plus CyPass in the right eye. Surgery was uneventful, however, there was a small amount of hyphema related to bleeding around the site of Cypass insertion. Intraocular pressure (IOP) was between 6 and 7 mmHg in the first week on no glaucoma medications. At the second postoperative week, IOP jumped to 30 mmHg and a clot was observed obstructing the CyPass lumen. We disrupted the clot with a single shot from a Nd:YAG laser. Twenty minutes after the laser, the IOP was 8 mmHg. CyPass was recanalized without complications. IOP was 11 mmHg at 1 month postoperatively with timolol 0.5% twice a day. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPORTANCE: It is important to perform gonioscopy to evaluate for CyPass obstruction in cases of IOP spike. Nd:YAG laser may be a useful approach to recanalize the CyPass in the early postoperative follow-up.