Developments in Ophthalmology

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Integrated intraoperative anterior segment optical coherence tomography is an extremely valuable tool that can be used by corneal surgeons when performing pediatric lamellar corneal transplant surgery. This chapter will demonstrate its use in infants and children with a variety of corneal diseases. These diseases include congenital corneal opacities such as Peters' anomaly (both types I and II), surgical management of limbal dermoids, and its use in selective corneal transplant surgery such as DALK (deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty) or DSEK (Descemet stripping endothelial keratoplasty)...

The advent of integrated intraoperative ocular coherence tomography (i2OCT) has opened the door for safer more complex surgeries of the retina and cornea. However, to limit its use to just two subspecialties within ophthalmology is an opportunity lost for many other subspecialties. Here, we describe the use of i2OCT in strabismus surgery. It can be used to identify extraocular muscles, especially in cases of strabismus reoperations, thereby augmenting the surgical technique. Its use to help train strabismus surgery is invaluable, allowing the trainee to understand the depth of the scleral pass during strabismus surgery...

The relationship between the anterior vitreous interface and the posterior capsule has received increasing attention in the past decade. The advent of integrated intraoperative optical coherence tomography has allowed a real-time opportunity to grasp this dynamic understanding. Here we describe the normal anatomy of this interface in children and then demonstrate the variation in this interface with different forms of pediatric cataract, namely a posterior plaque and posterior capsular opacity due to abnormal adherence to the vitreous face...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Intraoperative portable handheld and microscope-integrated OCT enhance the pediatric vitreoretinal surgeon's diagnostic abilities during examination under anesthesia and surgery, particularly in children who are challenging to examine preoperatively due to young age or ocular trauma. Improved OCT-guided visualization of vitreoretinal anatomic relationships has the potential to improve surgical safety and efficiency. In retinopathy of prematurity and other pediatric retinal vascular conditions, intraoperative OCT can be critical for distinguishing between retinoschisis and retinal detachment and highlighting abnormalities of the vitreoretinal interface that may contribute to development of tractional retinal detachments...

The advent of integrated intraoperative optical coherence tomography (i2OCT) has opened the door for safer and more complex surgeries in the retina and cornea. However, to limit its use to just two subspecialties within ophthalmology is an opportunity lost for many other subspecialties. Here, we describe the use of i2OCT in oculoplastic surgery. It can be used in cases of severe symblepharon where the cornea is heavily involved, so that the surgeon is aware of the depth of the pannus when trying to remove it...

The advent of integrated intraoperative optical coherence tomography (i2OCT) has opened the door for safer and more complex surgeries in the retina and cornea. However, to limit its use to just two subspecialties within ophthalmology is an opportunity lost for many other subspecialties. Here, we describe the use of i2OCT in pediatric cataract surgery in circumstances that are not traditionally considered for i2OCT use. The specific circumstances include: evaluation and treatment of a child following cataract extraction with lens implantation who has failed two attempts at YAG capsulotomy; lysis of post-trauma keratolenticular adhesion in an opaque cornea; surgical removal of secondary lens epithelial cell proliferation after pediatric cataract extraction with lens implantation, and identification of posterior capsular openings and defects...

The advent of integrated intraoperative optical coherence tomography (i2OCT) has opened the door for safer and more complex surgeries in the retina and cornea. However, to limit its use to just two subspecialties within ophthalmology is an opportunity lost for many other subspecialties. Here, we describe the use of i2OCT in pediatric glaucoma surgery. It can be used to identify Schlemm's canal, Barkan's membrane, demonstrate the corneal pathology in Haab's striae, and iris hypoplasia in cases of Axenfeld-Rieger anomaly...

PURPOSE: Cyclodestructive procedures are traditionally used in cases of glaucoma that are refractory to medical and surgical therapy. The goal of this chapter is to describe the indications, contraindications, techniques, and pitfalls of cyclodestructive procedures, including transscleral cyclophotocoagulation (TCP), micropulse TCP (MP-TCP), endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP), and ultrasound cilioplasty. METHODS: A literature search for cyclodestructive techniques was performed, and relevant studies were included for evaluation and review...

Pediatric glaucoma surgery is challenging because of the differences in anatomy from the adult, differences in the behavior of the tissues of a child's glaucomatous eye, the variety in causes of the disease, and difficulties with postoperative management. Goniotomy and trabeculotomy are the preferred initial treatments for primary congenital glaucoma. Trabeculectomy with adjunctive mitomycin C is more likely to succeed in older, phakic patients, but carries the long-term risk of bleb-associated endophthalmitis...

The coexistence of cataract and glaucoma represents a challenge for the ophthalmologist and the issue is still open to debate. The surgical management is based on both the visual field defect and the loss of visual acuity. The surgical options currently available are: (1) cataract extraction alone, (2) sequential glaucoma surgery and cataract extraction, and (3) combined surgery by 1 site or by 2 separate sites. Phacoemulsification alone is suggested when glaucoma can be controlled by medication and the visual field defect is moderate and nonprogressive...

Advances in anterior segment imaging modalities have contributed new insights towards a better understanding of the various mechanisms of angle-closure glaucoma (ACG). This development is key to good decision making when confronted with angle-closure patients needing appropriate therapy. Surgical management of ACG remains an integral part of glaucoma patient care. The distinctive anatomy of angle-closure eyes and the few objective lines of evidence to support the effectiveness of the different surgical treatment options present a challenge to glaucoma surgeons...

In primary open-angle glaucoma, the site of greatest resistance to aqueous outflow is thought to be the trabecular meshwork (TM) and inner wall of Schlemm's canal. Augmentation of the conventional (trabecular) outflow pathway can facilitate physiologic outflow and subsequently lower intraocular pressure. The most recent approach to enhancing the conventional outflow pathway is via an internal approach to the TM and Schlemm's canal. Ab interno Schlemm's canal surgery includes 4 novel surgical approaches: (1) removal of the TM and inner wall of Schlemm's canal by an internal approach (ab interno trabeculectomy), (2) implantation of a microstent to bypass the TM, (3) disruption of the TM and inner wall of Schlemm's canal via an internal approach (ab interno trabeculotomy), and (4) dilation of Schlemm's canal via an internal approach (ab interno canaloplasty)...

Ab externo Schlemm's canal (SC) surgery (e.g., viscocanalostomy and canaloplasty) is a valuable alternative to glaucoma filtration surgery. It targets the abnormally high resistance to outflow in the trabecular meshwork (TM) and reestablishes the physiologic outflow system. In viscocanalostomy, viscoelastic substance is injected to dilate SC, which in turn leads to microdisruptions of the inner wall. In canaloplasty, the additional intracanalicular stent (suture or Stegmann Canal Expander®) keeps the canal patent and enhances the circumferential flow...

The use of lasers is slowly pervading all subspecialties of ophthalmology, especially glaucoma, and lasers are slowly replacing many glaucoma surgeries. Conventional trabeculectomy has so far remained the gold standard for glaucoma surgery and efforts are being made to develop a new surgical approach to overcome the limited success rate and safety issues of this traditional procedure. There is a great interest in using lasers for ab interno and ab externo penetrating and nonpenetrating filtering surgery. Theoretically, laser-assisted surgery offers the potential advantage of improved accuracy, repeatability, and safety, although the main drawback of using lasers for this purpose is the potential collateral damage induced by the scattered energy...

Mini glaucoma devices for external filtration may be implanted with an ab externo procedure (Ex-PRESS and InnFocus Microshunt) or with an ab interno procedure (XEN Gel stent). The Ex-PRESS is an FDA-approved mini glaucoma device that has been developed in order to simplify anterior guarded filtering procedures, making them faster, safer and easier. It is positioned under a scleral flap and it is introduced in the anterior chamber through a needle hole, avoiding the excision of the corneal-scleral button and the iridectomy...

Subconjunctival absorption of aqueous humor is an essential part of glaucoma filtration surgery. Mitomycin C (MMC) and 5-fluorouracil have been used to reduce postoperative episcleral fibrosis and scar formation in the filtering bleb area for more than 2 decades. Both antimetabolites have also been frequently injected before needling revision of failing filtering blebs. Recently, MMC was also tried in tube surgery and nonpenetrating filtering surgery, but its usefulness in these applications has not yet been determined...

There is a large body of evidence from clinical and experimental studies indicating that the long-term use of topical drugs may induce ocular surface changes, causing ocular discomfort, dry eye, conjunctival inflammation, subconjunctival fibrosis, corneal surface impairment, and, as a consequence of chronic ocular surface changes, the potential risk of failure for further glaucoma surgery. Subclinical inflammation has also been widely described in patients receiving antiglaucoma treatments for long periods of time, with inflammatory cell infiltration and fibroblast activation in the conjunctiva and subconjunctival space...

Correct postoperative management is fundamental to prevent and treat complications and to optimize the success of filtering surgery. Timely control visits and appropriate actions and prescriptions ensure the best outcomes, allow recovery from a number of untoward events, and can reestablish filtration when failure seems imminent. In contrast, a slack follow-up and wrong interventions or prescriptions can lead to the failure of any surgery, no matter how accurately it was carried out, sometimes jeopardizing vision and even the anatomy of the globe...