Anterior chamber tube shunt to an encircling band (Schocket procedure) in the treatment of refractory glaucoma.

We reviewed a series of 42 eyes in patients with refractory glaucoma who had undergone a Schocket procedure. The mean follow up was 17.5 months; the minimal follow up, 8 months. The success rate was 81%, with "success" defined as either (1) an intraocular pressure less than 21 and greater than 5 mm Hg, with a pressure reduction of at least 10%, and less or no medication; or (2) a pressure reduction of at least 30%, with no change of medication. When eyes with a loss of more then one Snellen line of visual acuity were interpreted as failures, the success rate dropped to 61%. Forty percent of all cases required revision. In four cases, the shunt had to be removed (three cases due to hypotony and one secondary to conjunctival erosion). These results are in the range of those obtained by other investigators using this technique or other tube-shunt procedures.