Focusing on surgical and laser advances in glaucoma management

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Lowering the IOP remains the mainstay treatment to stop the progression of glaucoma. Different modalities can be used to achieve this including IOP lowering medications, laser, and surgeries. Nowadays, minimally invasive glaucoma surgeries and newer lasers are becoming more popular due to their safety profile, and their efficacy, allowing the patients to be less dependent on life long medications and substituting more invasive procedures as trabeculectomy, and shunt operations.

Areas covered: This review will go through how lasers and surgery are used to lower the IOP, and the newest techniques, and modalities used to achieve this.

Expert opinion: the authors of this review believe that in five years’ time lasers and minimally invasive glaucoma procedures will replace eye drops and surgeries like trabeculectomy and shunt procedures.

KEYWORDS:

• Intraocular pressure
• laser Trabeculoplasty
• cyclophotocoagulation
• trabeculectomy
• shunt procedures
• minimally invasive glaucoma procedures
• non-penetrating glaucoma procedures

Article highlights

• Selective laser trabeculoplasty is a safe alternative as a first-line treatment in cases of open-angle closure, which shows good efficacy and safety.

• Endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation is an option to decrease the intraocular pressure, which can be combined with cataract surgery.

• Trabeculectomy and shunt procedures remain the mainstay for refractory glaucoma cases.

• Minimally invasive glaucoma procedures are a popular alternative to control the intraocular pressure, and decrease drop dependence.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was not funded.