Gonioscopy

Gonioscopy is done to:

• Look at the front of the eye to check for glaucoma.
• See if the drainage angle of the eye is closed or nearly closed. This helps your doctor see which type of glaucoma you have. Gonioscopy can also find scarring or other damage to the drainage angle.
• Treat glaucoma. During gonioscopy, laser light can be pointed through a special lens at the drainage angle. Laser treatment can decrease pressure in the eye and help control glaucoma.
• Check for birth defects that may cause glaucoma.

Gonioscopy is usually done by a doctor who treats eye problems (ophthalmologist).

Eyedrops are used to numb your eye so that you will not feel the lens touching your eye during this painless examination.

Gonioscopy is usually done in your doctor's office. During gonioscopy, you may be asked to lie down or to sit in a chair. A microscope (slit lamp) is used to look inside your eye. If you sit, you will place your chin on a chin rest and your forehead against a support bar and look straight ahead. A special lens is placed lightly on the front of your eye, and a narrow beam of bright light is pointed into your eye. Your doctor looks through the slit lamp at the width of the drainage angle.

The examination takes less than 5 minutes.

If you wear contact lenses, remove them before this test and do not put them back in for 1 hour after the test or until the medicine used to numb your eye wears off.

If your eyes might be dilated during your examination, your doctor may suggest that you arrange for someone to drive you home after the test.

A partially or completely blocked drainage angle may mean that you have closed-angle glaucoma. There are many reasons that a drainage angle can be blocked. These include scar tissue, abnormal blood vessels, injury or infection, and extra color pigment of the iris.