A Prospective Randomized Control Trial of Pilocarpine Use After Combined Cataract/Trabectome Surgery

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide, and its treatment consists of lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) to prevent damage to the optic nerve and loss of vision. Microincisional glaucoma surgery (MIGS) have become more popular in recent years as less invasive methods than traditional surgeries that effectively reduce IOP and help reduce the medication burden on patients.There are multiple available MIGS procedures, most of which act by increasing trabecular outflow. One such procedure is the Trabectome, which is usually performed in combination with cataract surgery.

Trabectome is an FDA approved device used to perform a trabeculectomy via an internal approach. A strip of 60-120 degrees of the nasal angle trabecular meshwork and the inner wall of Schlemm's canal are removed providing a direct pathway for aqueous outflow from the anterior chamber into the collector channels[2].

Pilocarpine, a parasympathomimetic agent, is a glaucoma medication that works by causing contraction of the ciliary muscle leading to opening of the trabecular meshwork[3]. Due to its frequent dosing requirement and large number of ocular and systemic side effects, pilocarpine has largely fallen out of favor for the treatment of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), except in patients for whom few other alternatives exist. However, pilocarpine is often used after trabectome surgery.

The rationale for its use after Trabectome procedure is for its miotic effect, which theoretically may prevent the formation of peripheral anterior synechiae. Formation of peripheral anterior synechiae can lead to the closure of the cleft that is generated and the possibility of failure of the procedure. While the theoretical benefit of pilocarpine has been proposed, its actual benefit has never been proven.

In this study, the aim is to evaluate whether Trabecome / Cataract surgery without pilocarpine is non-inferior to Trabecome / Cataract surgery procedure followed by treatment with pilocarpine