Last updated: 02/17/2009

For several weeks postoperatively, the patient is given topical antibiotics and steroids. In addition, oral steroids may be given to patients who had ocular inflammation prior to surgery. Some surgeons use atropine to maintain the eye in a temporary...

dilated state. Glaucoma medication may be continued for a few months due to possible IOP fluctuation during the early post-operative period. Follow-up visits are scheduled for one day after the surgery, weekly during the first month, twice a month during the second month, and again at three months. Patients can resume normal daily activities within a few days. The sutures may cause a foreign body sensation, which decreases as the stitches dissolve. This does not usually require treatment.

Aftercare in the surgeon's office involves monitoring for the signs of hypotony and lowered IOP. The treatment for post-operative hypotony is to tighten the tube of a non-valved implant. As the bleb forms, adjustments are made in the tubing ligature to increase flow through the ligature. If the pressure continues to rise, the tube may be blocked, and excess fluid may have to be tapped. Tube blockage may occasionally occur. Hypotony may also be caused by leakage from the conjunctival wound site.