While procedural management has come a long way in the past decade, there are still gaps in options for certain patients. From a broader perspective, the fact that our field is now thinking about remaining unmet needs in procedural management highlights that we have suitable options for a large majority of patients, but there are still some instances where we are left with few desirable options—if any at all. Thankfully, ongoing innovation from our industry partners will help to fill these relatively small gaps. In the following, we present insights into the current unmet needs in procedural management, and how the MicroShunt (Santen) may help to fill treatment gaps. On the byline of these two articles, there is a mix of surgeons who who have experience implanting the device in their patients (Ike Ahmed, MD, and Michele Lim, MD) and others who have not yet gained hands-on experience, but nevertheless bring with them substantial experience in research settings and in managing patients in real-world settings. This lineup brings forth an objective look at controlled ab externo filtration surgery, and an unbiased exploration of the role, rationale, and potential positioning of a novel treatment option for glaucoma.
— Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC
