The Involves a little operation (MIGS) to insert a tiny titanium tube iStent in the drainage angle of the eye to improve drainage and control eye pressure.
The increased eye (intraocular) pressure associated with open angle glaucoma basically results from the balance between the rate at which aqueous fluid is produced within the eye and the rate at which it leaves through the drainage angle of the eye. Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS) involves your surgeon inserting a tiny titanium tube, iStent, into the drainage angle of the eye. This can control eye pressure and consequently help prevent further damage to the optic nerve and visual field.
Treatment with iStent has been approved by NICE in UK and FDA in USA.
Two implanted iStents helping control intraocular pressure in glaucoma.
Your surgeon will generally take only 5-10 minutes to implant your iStent inject®, often done at the end of cataract surgery. If you don’t need, or have already had, cataract surgery then you can have an iStent inserted as a sole procedure.
Your surgery can performed under local anaesthetic. If required, our consultant anaesthetists can give you sedation to relax you.
Your nurse will give you post-operative drops to take. Our receptionist will give you a follow-up appointment is for approximately one week.
Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery with iStent results, on average, in a 30% drop in eye pressure. 76% of patients able to stop their glaucoma drops completely
My Eye Clinic can provide expert consultant assessment of glaucoma.
The clinic has a full range of diagnostic equipment for glaucoma: corneal thickness measurement, intraocular pressure measurement, drainage angle assessment, automated visual field assessment and OCT scans of the optic disc.
My Eye Clinic has a new operating theatre fully equipped with the latest generation cataract machine (Alcon Centurion Gold). We have an excellent operating microscope and a new (Dorc Nexus) combined cataract and vitrectomy machine.
Mr El-Assal completed his Ophthalmology training in the North East of England. He accomplished his glaucoma sub-specialist fellowship in Moorfields Eye Hospital-London where he developed a special interest in minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS). He is currently working as a Consultant specialising in glaucoma and cataract surgery at Sunderland Eye Infirmary.
iStent is made specifically from medical grade titanium and consequently it will not cause you any allergy or rejection
A very small amount of bleeding inside the eye occurs during surgery but this resolves within a few days. A transient increase in intraocular pressure can occur.
Occasionally the iStent does not succeed in lowering the eye pressure. It will not, however, create any additional harm to the eye.
