To evaluate the prognosis of vision and the development of amblyopia in primary congenital glaucoma patients.

The author reviewed 38 eyes of 22 primary congenital glaucoma patients and evaluated variables such as age at time of surgery and at the last visit, preoperative IOP, Cup-to-disc(CD) ratio, corneal diameter, refractive error, axial lengths and IOP, CD ratio and visual acuity at the last visit. According to visual acuity, the patients were divided into 3 groups, good (>0.5), fair (0.1~0.5), and poor (<0.1). The amblyopia was defined when BCVA was below 0.8 and no evidence of progression of glaucoma. There were 4 types of amblyopia: deprivation, anisometropic, strabismic and organic. The author compared the 3 groups and evaluated factors affecting the vision as well as the prevalence of amblyopia.

There were 17 eyes in the good group, 4 eyes in the fair group and 17 eyes in the poor group ( p <0.05). Amblyopia developed in 17 eyes with 7 eyes showing deprivation amblyopia. Anisometropic and organic amblyopia were each found in 4 eyes, and strabismic amblyopia was found in 2 eyes. The postoperative IOP and CD ratio and preoperative CD ratio were significantly lower in the good group than the other groups ( p <0.05).

Final VA was poor in 45% of eyes with primary congenital glaucoma, and amblyopia developed in 45% of these eyes. The prognosis for vision may be related to the treatment of glaucoma and amblyopia.