Glaucoma sponge that halts need for surgery
A NEW treatment for glaucoma promises to control the eye condition for years without many of the ill-effects of surgery.
The pioneering method involves implanting a tiny strip of sponge into the corner of the eye to soak away excess fluid that causes the condition.
About 4% of over-50s in Ireland have glaucoma, which is caused when the optic nerve is damaged by pressure built up by the trapped fluid.
Restoring lost vision is not yet possible, but doctors have a range of treatments to prevent it getting worse, although each has drawbacks.
Patients with primary openangle glaucoma – the most common form of the condition, which leads to progressive loss of side vision – are usually given eye-drop drugs to start with.
If these fail, laser surgery is used to widen the natural channels that drain fluid from the eye.
But the benefits of laser surgery can be modest, or wane over time, at which point many sufferers go for traditional surgery.
This often involves drainage channels being opened further and the creation of an artificial ‘reservoir’ for excess fluid.
But recovery can take more than a month, with some patients suffering debilitating sideeffects such as dry, gritty eyes.
The new method involves a 5mm strip of high-density sponge less than a millimetre thick called a MINIject.
Chris Dimitriou, of the Colchester Eye Centre of Excellence in Essex, said: ‘It’s working with the natural structure of the eye.
‘With some patients, they can even go swimming a week after having it implanted.’
The sponge drains the excess eye fluid into a natural chamber called the supraciliary space, from where it is absorbed by the rest of the body.
The consultant eye surgeon recently implanted MINIject devices into eight patients, the first to receive them.
Trial data indicates the procedure has a long-lasting effect, with eye pressure, on average, more than a third lower after two years. There was also no sign of damage to the back of the cornea.
Mr Dimitriou said MINIject could also be used for patients whose glaucoma had not been controlled by traditional surgery, holding out hope of retaining good vision for longer.