Common procedures for glaucoma

  Depending on the type of glaucoma, the surgical procedure varies.  For patients with congenital glaucoma, the most common surgical procedure is a trabeculotomy. A trabeculotomy knife is used to do a trabeculotomy of about 120 degrees range. A microcatheter-guided 360-degree trabeculotomy is also an option, with a larger range of incisions and more definitive surgical results.  For closed-angle glaucoma, if the atrial angle closure is less than 180 degrees, laser peripheral iridotomy can be done, or surgical peripheral iridotomy can be performed. If the atrial angle is closed more than 180 degrees, trabeculectomy should be performed.  For open-angle glaucoma, there are more surgical options available. It can be treated with selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT), trabeculectomy, or non-penetrating trabeculectomy, express glaucoma drain implantation, glaucoma drain implantation, or schlemm’s canaloplasty.