Classic Papers in Glaucoma

At the beginning of the 20th century, our knowledge about glaucoma was truly rudimentary. Since then, it has grown to become a field of its own and, in the past decade, our concepts about its pathogenesis and potential avenues of future therapy have ... Read more

At the beginning of the 20th century, our knowledge about glaucoma was truly rudimentary. Since then, it has grown to become a field of its own and, in the past decade, our concepts about its pathogenesis and potential avenues of future therapy have taken a quantum leap forward. It was not until the 1990s that the extent of non-pressure dependent risk factors for glaucoma became widely appreciated. Investigations into the role of ischemia and alternatives to pressure-lowering therapy, such as neuroprotective agents, have become the most recent area of focus. The next generation should see many breakthroughs – new means of lowering intra-ocular pressure, genetic manipulation of trabecular function, transplantation, gene transfer therapy, and elimination of distinct anterior segment disorders, which lead to trabecular damage. Reversal of blindness, whether through retinal ganglion cell regeneration or transplantation or artificial eyes, will likely become a reality. This book is a testimony to our origins. It is a compilation of papers which, in retrospect, opened new avenues to the understanding and treatment of glaucoma. In order to be "classic", articles had to have been published prior to 1988. Each article is preceded by a brief introduction, placing it in the perspective of the times and describing how it affected future work in the field. We hope that this composite of classic papers will allow us to reflect on our past in order to lead us into the future, and that it will give the next generation of glaucomatologists a perspective on the past. R. Ritch and R. Caronia Less