What Are the Different Types of Surgery for Glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a disease that results from a buildup of pressure in your eye. It is a serious disease that may lead to blindness for a large population of people over 60 years old. The pressure buildup interrupts the drainage of fluid from your eye. This harms your vision by damaging your optic nerve. There are several treatments available for this ailment. Surgery is one of them, but it is usually the last option when other treatments do not work.

 

Some of the surgical treatments available for glaucoma include:
 

• Laser Surgery
   

• Electrocautery
   

• Drainage Implant Surgery
   

• EX-PRESS^® Mini-shunt
   

• Ahmed Glaucoma Valve
   

• Contact Transcleral Laser Cycloablation (CTLC)

Laser Surgery

The most common go-to surgical option for many doctors when it comes to glaucoma is laser surgery. Laser surgery is a treatment that you can choose to have at a clinic or your doctor’s office. Its advantage is that it is a procedure that does not require overnight admission afterward. This means that you can have the procedure and safely go home and continue with your life.
 

Laser surgery involves an intense light beam that helps drain fluid in your eyes. There are several forms of laser treatment. These are:
 

• Cyclophotocoagulation

  • This is when your doctor points a laser beam directly into a structure in your eye. Its purpose is to ease pressure in your eye. This is usually the last option when other laser treatments do not work.
     

• Argon Laser Trabeculoplasty (ALT)

  • ALT clears whatever is blocking your eyes from draining fluid. This treatment is common but does not work with everyone with glaucoma.
     

• Laser Peripheral Iridotomy (LPI)

  • This is a laser beam that helps create a small hole in your iris. This is ideal when the space between the eye’s iris is very small.
     

• Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT)

  • This is when your physician directs low-level laser beams only at the points in your eye with the most pressure. It is the next option when ALT does not ease the pressure. Most doctors prefer this as the first option for laser glaucoma treatment.

Electrocautery

This surgical procedure requires the use of a Trabectome. This device makes a small incision in the drainage tubes in your eye to ease the pressure. The Trabectome device uses heat to mesh tissue in your eye, which releases the fluid buildup in your eye.

 

Drainage Implant Surgery

This form of eye surgery is invasive and involves implants. It involves your surgeon placing several small tubes in your eye to drain the fluids in your eye.

 

EX-PRESS^® Mini-Shunt

This procedure involves the use of a steel surgical tube to maintain a steady flow of aqueous humour under the scleral flap of your eye. This procedure forms a bleb that is a better postoperative course than normal Trabeculectomy.
 

Ahmed Glaucoma Valve

This is a common option for most cases when Trabeculectomy does not help. This usually happens when you have complications from previous eye surgery.

Contact TRANSCLERAL Laser Cycloablation (CTLC)

Technically speaking, this is not an invasive form of surgery. This is the last option when all forms of glaucoma treatments and surgeries fail. The procedure directs a laser beam to the ciliary body.

To know more about glaucoma, visit Quality Eye Care at our offices in Jacksonville or Gainesville, Florida. You can also call (904) 601-1300 to book an appointment today.