Laser Iridotomy for Narrow Angle Glaucoma

 

 

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 09/22/2016 - 19:19
Country
Ireland
Age
54
Gender
Male
Did you perform any surgery for the eyes?
No
Do you suffer from pre-existing illnesses in the eye?
No
Do you suffer from any diseases in the body?
No
Do you use any eye drops?
No
Do you use any eye drops?
No

Question

 

 

Hi,

I have been told by my ophthalmologist that a have extremely narrow angles and that I am at high risk of having acute angle closure glaucoma attack.

He says I should have iridotomy to both eyes but when I google I find literally hundreds of people saying that their vision has been severely affected by iridotomy ie. lines, glare, double vision, ghosting etc.

Some have been so severely affected that they can no longer work or drive. I am extremely worried and anxious and don't know what to do?

Thanks

 

Answer

Thanks for your question
 

 

Laser Iridotomy for narrow angle glaucoma is very important, it prevents acute angle closure glaucoma which is an urgent condition that sometimes needs hospitalization and excessive treatment to reduce intraocular pressure. Acute angle closure glaucoma if not treated properly can damage the cornea, lens and also the optic nerve and to prevent that, iridotomy is the first line.
 
Intraocular pressure in narrow angle glaucoma is usually normal but when the pupil is diluted due to physiological conditions such as dim light,the angle can be closed causing high intraocular pressure.
 
Location of iridotomy is very important, it should be between 11 o'clock and 1 o'clock. At these locations the iridotomy will be covered by the eyelid and prevent the feeling of glare and double vision. Iridotomy in other locations can cause glare, double vision, photophobia and so on because it is not cover by the eyelid.

 

 

Comments

Profile picture for user visitor
 

 

By Stacy

Is Cataract surgery an option for narrow angles instead of iridotomy and does it carry additional risk due to the narrow angle condition ?

Profile picture for user Webeyeclinic.com
 

 

Cataract surgery can be done for narrow angle glaucoma in cases the angle and the anterior chamber of the eye is narrow due to large size lens.This type of glaucoma is called Phacomorphic Glaucoma.

In this case, cataract or the lens will be removed and replaced by intraocular lens. Most of the time, surgical iridectomy can be performed during the surgery.

Larger size lens or cataract can be diagnosed by special type device called anterior segment OCT and anterior segment UBM (ultrasound biomicroscopy).

 

 

Any surgery has its own complications which can be minimized or eliminated under the a skilled surgeon.

For more information about cataract surgery complications, Click here.

 

You will find useful information there abut the common complications after cataract eye surgery.

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