Making the move to MIGS

Sacramento, CA-When weighing the decision to adopt minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) into their practice, several advantages may support surgeons’ rationale, according to Richard A. Lewis, MD.

 “MIGS-defined as a minimally invasive procedure performed through an ab interno incision-is changing how we manage glaucoma,” said Dr. Lewis, a glaucoma specialist in private practice, Sacramento, CA. “We know that glaucoma is a spectrum of disease, and that one procedure will not be effective for each different type.

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“Thus, there is a need for different approaches to manage the range of conditions glaucoma represents, and MIGS is the first effort to be more specific,” he continued.

Explaining the advantages of MIGS, Dr. Lewis said it fits with an evolving truism for all glaucoma surgery in that it strives for greater safety. Compared with filtering and tube surgery, MIGS causes less tissue trauma, has fewer complications, and allows for earlier intervention while not precluding the opportunity for other types of glaucoma surgery.

Another major advantage of MIGS is that it focuses on the target tissue that is the root of the problem in Schlemm’s canal. In addition, it coincides with the concept that glaucoma is a surgical disease.

“The simplicity of treating glaucoma with surgery and the benefit of having a surgical cure as an alternative to a lifetime of medical treatment with its issues of compliance, cost, and side effects cannot be denied,” Dr. Lewis said. “If we had a surgical procedure that was safe and simple, I don’t believe anyone would opt not to use it.

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