Fig. 1

Filtering blebs after trabeculectomy. Functioning and nonfunctioning filtering blebs were visualized by in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) at 12 months after trabeculectomy. A filtering bleb can be seen under the slit-lamp. All five sites numbered 1 to 5 in the slit-lamp photograph were taken for IVCM. The anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) was taken across the line showed by white dotted arrow. For each scanning site of IVCM, epithelium and stroma were scanned for evaluation. a Elevated filtering bleb with striping phenomenon (multiple parallel hypo-reflective layers inside the presumed Tenon’s layer) (blue arrow) can be seen in AS-OCT. Larger microcysts area (white arrow) and fewer hyperreflective dots (black arrow) were found in epithelium of functioning bleb (E1–E5). Loose connective tissue (S1–S5) was revealed in the functioning bleb. b In AS-OCT, the flat filtering bleb and hyperreflective bleb wall can be seen in the nonfunctioning bleb. In IVCM, E1-E5 showed few small microcysts area (white arrow) with scattered hyperreflective dots (black arrow). S1–S5 showed dense connective tissue with hyperreflective fibrous network and corrugated blood vessels