Hi All,
I was diagnosed with glaucoma at the age of 15/16.
I have been told recently that my right eye is getting worst my eye nerve is getting thin and I am currently on the highest form of drops.
They have told me that I would need to get Trabeculectomy, I have my concerns and wanted to find out if anyone in there 20’s has got it done and how there experience has been.
hi Arif123
I have had trabulectomy in both eyes ( not 20 thou I’m 40 digagnosed with glaucoma in my mid 30s my experience with trabs was quite easy the fear is the worst thing but the recovery is quite easy and it seems so far the surgery was a success the only thing it did was cause dry eyes as well but I believe my pressure is under control the last apt I had it was 16 & 9 . I can’t say what it’s like for a 20 year old but yeah it’s hard having this condition at a young age as most patients are in their 70sor 80s I was the youngest my specialist has ever seen and with very high pressure into the mid 40s in both eyes for a very long time .if you have a good dr u will be fine .I wish u all the best
Thank you.
Has it affected your vision in any way after the Trabeculectomy?
no it hasn’t I have damage From glaucoma in my left eye it doesn’t see as well as my right if I’d not had surgery I’d probably be blind and my good eye would be completely unable to be saved I was very fortunate to have the surgery and I’m forever grateful to my specialist for his help with my vision
hello. I’m 41 now but I was diagnosed at 23 and had my trab at 29. Other than needling a year after, I’ve had no other surgery intervention to that eye. I’ve obviously had to take my drops and I’ve had laser once or twice (in trab eye) but it’s still hanging in there. I read a few years back on my notes that it was a ‘partially functioning bleb’ which scared me a bit but it must be doing something right and it’s kept pressure at a reasonable level (for me). It’s a worry if you need a trab but you got to trust it will be better for your long term vision
hi i had my trab at 40 in one eye and shortly after my 41st in the 2nd eye. Everyone’s healing process will be different. This is my own experience: my sight hasn’t been the same again. My sight is blurry from a mixture of dryness and light sensitivity since the operation. I had scarring so need further procedures to soften the scar tissue. I’m not trying to put you off the surgery because i think having the surgery has helped with lowering the eye pressure and in the long run saving me money from using the glaucoma eye drops
Thank you, I guess I’ll just have to take the risk 
I'm nowhere near as young as you, but still on the young side to have had trabs (I'm 51). I had a trab in my right eye in December following a sudden spike in pressure which damaged my vision in that eye a lot. The trab has stabilised the pressure in that eye, and the vision, whilst very poor, hasn't got any worse. My consultant did a trab on my left eye in February to try and stop any progression of the Glaucoma in that eye. I had a bit of scare where the pressure shot up a week or two post-op, and in the end it needed a needling procedure, but the pressure is now under control, and with glasses I have 20:20 vision in that eye - the vision is about the same as it was before the trab. I'm no longer taking any Glaucoma drops/tablets. One thing I would say is that the surgery was nowhere near as scary as I thought - and whilst "needling" sounds horrible, really it was a very straightforward process which only needed anaesthetic drops. If I'd not had the trabs, I'm 100% certain I'd be completely blind in my right eye now, and I suspect it would've been a matter of time before I had issues with my left eye.
Thank you for the wise words, this has definitely made he think positive about getting the Trab done
Surgery option (trabectome vs trabeculectomy)
Trabeculectomy
trabeculectomy
Vision in the recovery weeks ( and long term) after a trabeculectomy.
