Endoscopic Goniotomy for Infantile Glaucoma

January 6, 2013 updated by: Karen Joos, Vanderbilt University

Glaucoma surgery is performed on children less than 3 years old for infantile glaucoma which untreated can cause blindness. Glaucoma is an uncontrolled high eye pressure in these children often due to incomplete development of the part of the eye which normally allows fluid to drain out of the eye. Two procedures are possible and equal in their success of lowering the eye pressure. However, one (the goniotomy procedure) is preferred since it takes 10 minutes rather than 1 hour (for the trabeculotomy procedure) to perform under general anesthesia. This is important in young children to reduce anesthesia exposure especially if both eyes need surgery. If the glaucoma has caused the cornea or front of the eye to become too cloudy, then the view is too poor to place a lens on the cornea and use a needle to perform the shorter procedure. However, a small endoscope which has been FDA approved for use in the eye will allow direct viewing of the area which needs treatment. A needle attached to this endoscope allows the shorter goniotomy to be performed rather than proceeding to the longer trabeculotomy procedure. The outcome measure of this study is anesthesia time and reduction in intraocular pressure .

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Glaucoma

Intervention / Treatment

Device: endoscopic goniotomy

Detailed Description

b. The standard examination under anesthesia initially will be performed including measuring the child's intraocular pressure, measuring dimensions of the eye, examining the front of the eye under the operating microscope, examining the portion of the eye where the fluid drains, evaluating the back of the eye with an ultrasound, and possible documentation with photographs.

When the diagnosis is confirmed by this examination, the eye or eyes will be carefully evaluated for their clarity. If a standard goniotomy procedure can not be done, then the endoscopic goniotomy will be performed. The procedure is identical with: cleaning the eyelid skin, using a speculum to open the eyelids, making a small cut into the cornea, and placing a viscoelastic substance into the eye to maintain its shape. The procedure then differs since the inserted needle is attached to the viewing endoscope. I will then view the inside of the eye on a TV monitor in addition to looking through the operating microscope. This will allow me to directly see the structures which I will need to cut. Normally, I depend upon looking through a lens placed on the cornea which must be fairly clear so that I can see to cut the structures in the standard procedure. The procedure should not take much longer than the standard goniotomy and the same amount of tissue will be cut as in a standard goniotomy. The needle is then removed. The remainder of the procedure is identical which includes placing a stitch in the corneal incision, adjusting the amount of fluid in the eye so the pressure is not too low or high, giving a dilating drop, giving a steroid and antibiotic injection around the eye, giving steroid ointment and an eye patch.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Phase

Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

United States
- Tennessee
  - Nashville, Tennessee, United States, 37232
    - Vanderbilt University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

1 week to 3 years (CHILD)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

childhood glaucoma with corneal edema unable to perform goniotomy

Exclusion Criteria:

older than 3 years

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Primary Purpose: TREATMENT
Allocation: NON_RANDOMIZED
Interventional Model: SINGLE_GROUP
Masking: NONE

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Intraocular pressure reduction Time Frame: Postoperatively	Postoperatively

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Clearing of corneal edema Time Frame: Postoperatively	Postoperatively

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Vanderbilt University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Joos KM, Shen JH. An ocular endoscope enables a goniotomy despite a cloudy cornea. Arch Ophthalmol. 2001 Jan;119(1):134-5. No abstract available.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

April 1, 1997

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

July 1, 2007

Study Completion (ACTUAL)