In simple words: This procedure widens the eye's drainage canal to lower pressure inside the eye, which helps treat glaucoma.The doctor makes a small cut under the eye's surface to reach the drainage canal and then widens it. No permanent device is left in the eye.

This procedure involves dilating the eye's aqueous outflow canal to relieve intraocular pressure.A subconjunctival incision is made, and a scleral flap is created to access Schlemm's canal. The canal is then dilated, often using a microcatheter and suture (canaloplasty) or by injecting a viscoelastic solution, to improve aqueous humor drainage. No device or stent is left in place. The scleral flap is then closed.

Example 1: A patient with open-angle glaucoma uncontrolled by medical therapy undergoes canaloplasty to improve aqueous outflow and reduce intraocular pressure., A patient with worsening glaucoma who is not a candidate for trabeculectomy due to high risk of complications undergoes canaloplasty., A patient undergoes canaloplasty with the concurrent insertion of a Hydrus microstent to further enhance aqueous outflow.

Documentation should include the diagnosis (e.g., glaucoma), the method of canal dilation (e.g., canaloplasty, viscodilation), pre-operative intraocular pressure readings, any prior glaucoma treatments, and post-operative results.If other procedures are performed concurrently, such as stent placement, this must also be clearly documented.

** For viscoelastic injections spanning at least 3 clock hours, code 66174 is appropriate. Any less extensive procedure may require the use of an unlisted code.