Goniotomy with a single-use dual blade: Short-term results.

Purpose: To evaluate the intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering efficacy and safety of a single-use dual blade (Kahook) in patients with mild to end-stage glaucoma.

Setting: International multicenter ophthalmic care centers.

Design: Prospective interventional case series.

Methods: Consecutive patients with glaucoma who had phacoemulsification plus goniotomy with the single-use dual blade were enrolled in this study. Each center collected deidentified clinical data, including preoperative and postoperative IOP, medication use, adverse events, and whether additional surgery was required during a 6-month follow-up.

Results: Of the 71 eyes included in this study, 70% had primary open-angle glaucoma. Other diagnoses included angle-closure, pigmentary, pseudoexfoliative, and normal-tension glaucoma. Sixty-five percent of eyes were classified as having mild to moderate glaucoma and 35%, severe glaucoma. The mean baseline IOP decreased from 17.4 mm Hg ± 5.2 (SD) to 12.8 ± 2.6 mm Hg 6 months postoperatively and the hypotensive medication use decreased from 1.6 ± 1.3 to 0.9 ± 1.0, respectively (P < .001 and P = .005, respectively). The most common observation was blood reflux during surgery (39.4%).

Conclusion: Single-use dual blade goniotomy plus phacoemulsification resulted in a significant and sustained reduction in IOP and a decrease in glaucoma medications after 6 months of follow-up.