Glaucoma is a disease that damages the optical nerve, causing a progressive and irreversible loss of vision; it is usually, but not always, associated with elevated intraocular pressure that is caused by an accumulation of fluids called "aqueous humor" which is produced internally by the eye.
One way to relieve the dangerous high pressure in an eye with glaucoma is to make a new drain in the eye, a bypass for the blocked natural drain. This is called a trabeculectomy and it is a surgical procedure. It appears on the upper part of the eye, in the white part just beneath the upper lid, and has the shape of a "flap valve". The eye pressure is thus relieved because the "aqueous humor" can now drain through the new valve.
There are some cases in which patients require the implant of special drainage such as the Ahmed valves. These are indicated for glaucoma patients who do not respond to maximum medical therapy with eye drops, and who have not responded well to filtering surgery. The valve has a flow tube that is inserted into the anterior chamber of the eye and a fluid collection plate that is implanted underneath the conjunctiva, to allow the flow of aqueous fluid out of the eye into a chamber which is called a bleb.
ND YAG Laser peripheral iridotomy can be performed on patients who are susceptible to or affected by narrow angle glaucoma. During the iridotomy procedure, the laser energy is applied to create a small opening in the peripheral iris. This opening balances the pressure between the anterior and posterior iris, while correcting any other abnormal protrusion present in the iris.
There is another technique that is used to treat the drainage angle of the eye and is called trabeculoplasty. In patients presenting a condition of open angle glaucoma, especially those cases associated to high pigment dispersion (pigment glaucoma), the procedure facilitates the evacuation of the "aqueous humor".
One way to relieve the dangerous high pressure in an eye with glaucoma is to make a new drain in the eye, a bypass for the blocked natural drain. This is called a trabeculectomy and it is a surgical procedure. It appears on the upper part of the eye, in the white part just beneath the upper lid, and has the shape of a "flap valve". The eye pressure is thus relieved because the "aqueous humor" can now drain through the new valve.
There are some cases in which patients require the implant of special drainage such as the Ahmed valves. These are indicated for glaucoma patients who do not respond to maximum medical therapy with eye drops, and who have not responded well to filtering surgery. The valve has a flow tube that is inserted into the anterior chamber of the eye and a fluid collection plate that is implanted underneath the conjunctiva, to allow the flow of aqueous fluid out of the eye into a chamber which is called a bleb.
ND YAG Laser peripheral iridotomy can be performed on patients who are susceptible to or affected by narrow angle glaucoma. During the iridotomy procedure, the laser energy is applied to create a small opening in the peripheral iris. This opening balances the pressure between the anterior and posterior iris, while correcting any other abnormal protrusion present in the iris.
There is another technique that is used to treat the drainage angle of the eye and is called trabeculoplasty. In patients presenting a condition of open angle glaucoma, especially those cases associated to high pigment dispersion (pigment glaucoma), the procedure facilitates the evacuation of the "aqueous humor".