An Eye-Opening Solution?
Written by Theodore Do
Edited by Audrey Bantug
May 2, 2021
Edited by Audrey Bantug
May 2, 2021
Worldwide, approximately 75 million people are affected by glaucoma, making this disease the leading cause of irreversible blindness. Glaucoma is a condition in which the optic nerve is damaged and is often associated with elevated intraocular pressure (IOP), or high pressure in the eye. A team of researchers at Georgia Tech have developed a possible efficient treatment to reduce eye pressure, which may be a solution in glaucoma prevention.
In the eye, a fluid called the aqueous humor flows into and nourishes the lens of the eye. In a healthy eye, this fluid is constantly replaced as it drains into one of two channels: the main channel called the trabecular meshwork, or the lesser used and narrower channel called the uveoscleral pathway. When aqueous humor drainage is blocked, this leads to IOP. To resolve this problem, there are two solutions: either to decrease the amount of aqueous humor flowing into the eye, or to increase the flow out of the eye.
Researchers have developed a viscous solution, hyaluronic acid hydrogel, that can open up access to the uveoscleral pathway (Chae et al., 2020). Using a hollow microneedle less than one millimeter long, the hydrogel is injected just below the surface of the eye, holding open the channel to allow for greater aqueous humor outflow. Researchers injected this solution into rabbits’ eyes and discovered that the hydrogel could significantly reduce IOP for up to four months!
This discovery presents a possible treatment that is much more effective than current methods. With the current knowledge available, IOP can be reduced through the frequent use of medication, such as eye drops. However, this method can fail because if patients do not apply eye drops daily, they would experience further glaucoma progression. An alternative available method is through surgical procedures, but these are costly and risk the possibility of additional eye damage. Meanwhile, the hydrogel procedure only takes a few minutes and is relatively inexpensive and simple. Researchers suggest that with an improved hydrogel, IOP could be reduced for six months, meaning patients would only need to receive the procedure twice a year.
Before this treatment becomes a reality, researchers will need to test it on larger animals, as well as testing it on humans. In addition, further studies will be required to find out if the injections can be repeated without having reduced efficacy over time. Still, this discovery may prove to be a major step towards creating more accessible healthcare. A low-cost, low-risk, and time-efficient procedure would truly be an eye-opening solution.
Works Cited
Chae, J. J., Jung, J. H., Zhu, W., Gerberich, B. G., Bahrani Fard, M. R., Grossniklaus, H. E., Ethier, C. R., & Prausnitz, M. R. (2020). Drug-Free, Nonsurgical Reduction of Intraocular Pressure for Four Months after Suprachoroidal Injection of Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogel. Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany), 8(2), 2001908. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202001908