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Review
. 2023 Sep 23;3(4):171-179.
doi: 10.1016/j.aopr.2023.09.001. eCollection 2023 Nov-Dec.

Development and material characteristics of glaucoma surgical implants

Qiyu Qin  1   2 , Chengshou Zhang  1   2 , Naiji Yu  1   2 , Fan Jia  3   4 , Xin Liu  1   2 , Qi Zhang  1   2 , Min Chen  1   2 , Kaijun Wang  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Development and material characteristics of glaucoma surgical implants

Qiyu Qin et al. Adv Ophthalmol Pract Res. .

Abstract

Background: Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. The reduction of intraocular pressure has proved to be the only factor which can be modified in the treatment, and surgical management is one of the important methods for the treatment of glaucoma patients.

Main text: In order to increase aqueous humor outflow and further reduce intraocular pressure, various drainage implants have been designed and applied in clinical practice. From initial Molteno, Baerveldt and Ahmed glaucoma implants to the Ahmed ClearPath device, Paul glaucoma implant, EX-PRESS and the eyeWatch implant, to iStent, Hydrus, XEN, PreserFlo, Cypass, SOLX Gold Shunt, etc., glaucoma surgical implants are currently undergoing a massive transformation on their structures and performances. Multitudinous materials have been used to produce these implants, from original silicone and porous polyethylene, to gelatin, stainless steel, SIBS, titanium, nitinol and even 24-carat gold. Moreover, the material geometry, size, rigidity, biocompatibility and mechanism (valved versus nonvalved) among these implants are markedly different. In this review, we discussed the development and material characteristics of both conventional glaucoma drainage devices and more recent implants, such as the eyeWatch and the new minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) devices.

Conclusions: Although different in design and materials, these delicate glaucoma surgical implants have widely expanded the glaucoma surgical methods, and improved the success rate and safety of glaucoma surgery significantly. However, all of these glaucoma surgical implants have various limitations and should be used for different glaucoma patients at different conditions.

Keywords: Glaucoma drainage devices; Material characteristics; Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Various GDDs.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Various MIGS.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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