[Surgical indications in coexisting cataracts and glaucoma]

Cataract surgery in glaucoma patients remains a controversial subjects. Indication of surgery depends on a lot of clinical parameters: diagnosis, state, evolution of glaucoma as well as compliance with medical treatment--surgical procedures of cataract and glaucoma--sites of the surgery--use of antifibrosis agents and surgeon's experience. As cataract extraction alone decreases the intraocular pressure in open angle glaucoma and mainly in uncomplicated closed angle glaucoma and trabeculectomy alone reduces the intraocular pressure more than combined surgery with less complications we recommended the following surgical options: Cataract extraction alone in patients with controlled open angle glaucoma and in patients with closed angle glaucoma. A two step procedure: filtering surgery followed by cataract extraction in patients with poorly controlled open angle glaucoma or mixed closed angle glaucoma. Ambulatory surgery and topical anesthesia permit a two stages surgery with less inconveniences. A combined procedure in patients with a chronic closed angle glaucoma where filtering procedure alone is associated with important complications. Actually, the best surgical cataract procedure is phacoemulsification with a small supero-corneal incision and implantation of a foldable intraocular lens. The best filtering procedure remains trabeculectomy, or the new non penetrating trabecular surgery for experimented surgeons, in the superior quadrant. In the future new surgical procedures and new safe and non toxic pharmacologic drugs which modulate wound healing could be found in order to increase the efficacity and indications of combined surgery.