title: Two Japanese cases of pigmentary glaucoma followed for 15 and 16 years following laser peripheral iridotomy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To report two Japanese cases of pigmentary glaucoma (PG) treated with laser peripheral iridotomy (LPI) that were followed for 15 and 16 years, respectively.
  
  
  METHODS
  The medical records of two patients with PG who were successfully treated with LPI were reviewed. Changes in the intraocular pressure (IOP) were followed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Case 1 was that of a 35-year-old man with LPI who underwent argon laser trabeculoplasty twice. He required ocular hypotensive drugs to maintain the IOP at normal levels. Case 2 involved a 36-year-old man with LPI who required ocular hypotensive drugs to maintain his IOP at the low-teen level. The IOP of both patients was unstable during the first 6-8 years following the LPI, but showed a decrease at each annual follow-up examination up to the age of 50 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although only two cases were followed, we conclude that the long-term effects of LPI may play a role, at least partly, in stabilizing the IOP at the low-teen level. Both patients were relatively young at the time of the LPI, and age may have been a factor in the stabilization process. Our findings confirm similar findings in Western countries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu, 501-1194, Japan. sawadaa-gif@umin.ac.jp
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sawada
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D057908:Argon Plasma Coagulation; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure; D032801:Iridectomy / Q000379:methods*; D007498:Iris / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D033401:Microscopy, Acoustic; D014065:Tonometry, Ocular