Chat Highlights
Angle Closure Glaucoma
March 1, 2000

Norma Devine, Editor

On Wednesday, March 1, 2000, Dr. Rick Wilson, a glaucoma specialist at Wills, and the glaucoma chat group discussed "Angle Closure Glaucoma."

Note: Despite a particularly heavy schedule, Dr. Wilson managed a short visit to the chat room to answer some questions about angle closure glaucoma.

P: Doctor Wilson, what is angle closure?

Dr. Wilson: In angle closure glaucoma, the front chamber of the eye is shallow so that the iris is close to the drain in the eye. If the iris gets caught in the drain, it is like a sock getting caught in the sink drain, and a backup of fluid occurs. In the (angle-) closed eye, the pressure can go quite high.

P: Is angle closure glaucoma common in nanopthalmic eyes?

Dr. Wilson: Yes, it is very common in nanopthalmic eyes, which are very small with a normal size lens taking up an abnormally great part of the intraocular contents.

P: So is cataract surgery the best solution if iridotomies don't work?

Dr. Wilson: No, usually a gonioplasty is said to be the best method to handle angle closure in this entity. However, cataract extraction may be necessary if all else fails.

P: I had the lens implant with a trabeculectomy for my angle closure.

P: What is nanopthalmic?

P: A small eyeball from birth.

P: In your article on angle closure you mentioned a high roll on the iris. What's that?

Dr. Wilson: A high roll is like a wave going into the angle, narrowing the space between the iris and the drain (trabecular meshwork).

P: I've heard that sometimes after cataract surgery, IOP (intraocular pressure) goes down a little bit. Is that accurate?

Dr. Wilson: Yes, although it might take a month or two to do that.

P: Does that happen most of the time or only occasionally?

Dr. Wilson: Usually, but not always.

P: Thanks. I was wondering because I have a cataract in an eye in which the pressure may need to go down a couple of mm Hg, and I thought that (removal of the cataract) might help avoid a trab (trabeculectomy).

Since the chat ended early, the topic of angle closure will be discussed again at a later date.

Illustrations Copyright 2003 Tim Peters and Company, Inc. Peapack NJ 07977 USA. All Rights Reserved. www.timpetersandcompany.com

End of highlights for March 1st chat.

On March 8th, Dr. Wilson discussed Open Angle Glaucoma in the Chat room. Click here for highlights of that meeting.

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