Procedural treatments: Phacotrabeculectomy

Abstract

The management of simultaneous glaucoma and cataracts, either with a combined or staged procedure, stirs up many questions. According to Jampel and colleagues, many of the questions lack a good answer as the literature on this topic is somewhat scant and weak. Some key unanswered questions are (1) which procedure (trabeculectomy followed by cataract extraction at another time vs. simultaneous procedures) achieves a larger reduction in intraocular pressure (IOP), (2) how many eyes undergoing trabeculectomy will eventually require cataract extraction, and (3) how is the quality of life affected by the two approaches [1]. Also important to keep in mind is that the trend towards combined vs. separate procedures has varied over the decades with the introduction of new techniques. The trend now tends to be toward separate surgeries. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.