Glaucoma surgery

Parent Cafe
1

I have had a cascade of eye problems due to shingles that invaded my optic nerve in my left eye five years ago. I will always have inflammation problems, so I take a daily steroid eye drop to control that. Both the inflammation and steroid have led to the development of not only a cataract but glaucoma as well.

I had hoped I could just have routine cataract surgery (albeit a decade or two before most of my peers would), but it turns out the glaucoma, which is pretty well controlled with drops, might go haywire. So now the ophthalmologist wants to combine the cataract surgery with glaucoma surgery. He says I’m not a good candidate for laser, so it’s a pretty awful sounding ordeal (I will spare you the details), and my vision will be bad for possibly months afterward (that sucks because I need the cataract surgery because my vision is already bad). I might not even be able to drive my D off to freshman year in August.

So, has anyone had this tongue-twister of a surgery, trabeculectomy?

2

I’m bookmarking this…hoping I’m not in the same boat soon, but I might be.

3

I’ve never had it and never heard of it, but good luck to you.

4

Have you had a 2nd opinion?
My mother had good results with cataract surgery, but I have a friend whose had it, and has had nothing but problems.
Is your pressure not being controlled with medication/drops?
Not a fan of preventative surgery, unless if is something like getting your ovaries removed, because you have the BRCA mutation.