Surgery is not usually the first step in glaucoma treatment, but it may save your vision if other treatments fail.

A glaucoma is an increase in pressure inside the eye, just like an overinflated basketball. The fluid in the eye cannot drain as it should.. This can affect the optic nerve inside the eye and your vision.

When can surgery help?

The ophthalmologist prescribes eye drops or oral medications to reduce eye pressure... If the medications are not effective, the next step is surgery.

If these drugs have severe side effects, such as increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, or impotence, you may prefer to have surgery instead....In some people with high eye pressure and compromised vision, surgery may be needed as soon as possible.

What types of surgery are included?

Doctors may try laser surgery first....You can get treatments in the doctor's office or at a clinic....After the procedure, you can go home and be back to your normal routine by the next day.

The laser is a beam of intense light....this is done to open blocked tubes and drain fluid from the eye....it may take several weeks to see full results.

What do laser treatments include?

Here are some types of laser surgery for glaucoma:

Argon laser trabeculoplasty (ALT): This opens the blockage in the eye to drain the fluid. The doctor may treat half of the blockages first to see the success rate and then treat the other half. ALT is effective in about 75% of people with the most common form of glaucoma.

Selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT): If ALT is not very successful, the doctor may try this solution.. You can do SLT as often as you like.

Laser Peripheral Iridotomy (LPI): If the space between the iris (the colored part) and the cornea (the clear outer layer) is too small, you may have angle-closure or narrow-angle glaucoma. Fluid and pressure build up in this area. LPI uses a laser beam to make a small hole in the fluid.>

Cyclophotocoagulation: If other laser or surgical procedures don't reduce the fluid build-up and resulting pressure, your doctor can perform this procedure. He shines a laser on the structure inside the eye to reduce the pressure.. You may need to repeat this over time to keep your glaucoma under control.

What should be expected from laser surgery?

Laser surgery is usually done in a doctor's office or an outpatient eye clinic....the doctor numbs your eyes....you shouldn't feel much or no pain during the treatment....you may feel a slight burning or stinging sensation.

While you lie still, the doctor places a special lens over your eye and then shines the laser exactly at the spot that needs treatment... It may seem like a very quick, bright flash.

After laser surgery

Immediately after treatment, your vision may be a little blurry....you may also have some pain....the doctor will check your eye pressure for a few hours....you will need someone to drive you home after surgery.

You may need to continue taking your medications after laser surgery to control your eye pressure.

What are the other types of glaucoma surgeries?

If laser surgery or medications fail to reduce eye pressure, you may need regular surgery...you may need to go to a hospital or surgery center and may need several weeks to recover.

These methods include the following:

Trabecolectomy: The surgeon makes a small incision in the white part of the eye to remove some of the tissue network inside it... This work helps to drain the excess fluid.... You may need to take some medicine along with the surgery to prevent the formation of scar tissue... This procedure can be done in a doctor's office or an outpatient clinic.

Drainage implant surgery: The doctor places a small tube inside the eye to drain the fluid... Now there are minimally invasive implants.

Electrical cautery: In this procedure, the surgeon uses a thermal device called a trabectomy to make a fine cut in the drainage tubes of the eye. This transfers heat to the tissue network inside the eye and can reduce fluid accumulation and pressure. This procedure is not as invasive as trabeculectomy or implant drainage surgery.

What to expect?

You will receive medicine to numb your eyes and relax you....you should not feel any pain....you may feel very drowsy during the procedure.

After surgery, you should rest at home for about a week....You should not drive or study, or bend or lift heavy objects for 4 weeks..

Your vision may be blurry for about 6 weeks....Contact lenses may not fit properly until the bump or swelling subsides....About half of people who have this surgery no longer need medication to reduce pressure

Does Are there any risks?

• Eye pain or redness
• Eye pressure that is still too high or even too low
• Loss of vision
• infection
• Inflammation
• Bleeding in the eye

Glaucoma surgery cannot restore lost vision....If the pressure rises again, medication or more canal surgery may be needed....Get regular eye exams to make sure everything is going well.

Use GCORP LLC to consult an eye doctor.