7 Reasons Why Laser Is the Most Effective Technique to Treat Glaucoma

What is Glaucoma?

Glaucoma is an eye complication that has the ability to cause blindness by putting extreme pressure on the optic nerve. It gradually increases the pressure, which eventually damages the optic nerve, and causes permanent blindness, which is medically characterized as "GLAUCOMA". Glaucoma can be classified based on the intensity of the pressure which causes optic nerve damage. Now the disorder is prevalent in elderly adults and can be cured through laser surgery.

Advanced treatment of Glaucoma

The first line treatment for Glaucoma is simply an eye drop. It can be effective in the initial stage of Glaucoma. But it is a recurrent disease, as its symptoms can recede, and the Glaucoma can resurface. The function of eye drops is to curb the amount of fluid the eye produces and release intraocular pressure. If the eye nerves get damaged due to fluid pressure, that damage can't be reversed through simple eye-drop; patients need surgery.

Recently, laser surgery has been the best replacement for open eye surgery. There are total of seven reasons why laser is a reliable technique to treat Glaucoma. Let's check them out:

Its effectiveness is deeper than an unconventional eye drops treatment. Glaucoma specialists can do corrective laser treatment where eye drops are not effective (In case of damaged eye nerves).It can resolve the recurrence of Glaucoma. It is minimally invasive; therefore, it is risk-free, blade-less, & painless, relieves the fluid pressure in the eyes and keeps the affected eyes safe for 1-5 years, depending on that patient's physiological condition.As this is a minimally invasive treatment, it produces less scar tissue and releases pain.Glaucoma laser treatment is generally performed on an outpatient basis. It differs from an open-eye surgical process that involves long cuts and stitches, and the patient has to admit an eye hospital for a minimum of 7 days to heal. Laser glaucoma surgery is performed in 1-2 sessions.Laser Glaucoma treatment can bypass the side effect of dry eyes. Most glaucoma eye drops and medications tend to cause dry eyes or irritation in the eyes because they absorb the eye fluids to regulate the intraocular pressure. Laser treatment entirely bypasses eye irritation and inflammation.Laser surgery simplifies the whole procedure of glaucoma treatment. In the fast-paced industry, everyone doesn't have enough time to stop everything and invest all the time one periodically scheduled eye drops or stay in the hospital for 7-10 days after open surgery. Thus, Glaucoma is the best treatment to achieve his vision without wasting much time.Different types of laser treatment are available depending on the angle and depth of the Glaucoma. For instance, SLT is the best laser surgery for open-angle Glaucoma. On the other hand, iodimetry is mostly suitable cornea related pressure issues. Laser surgery is executed to cure the existing Glaucoma along with preventing some sort of Glaucoma.

Advanced Laser Treatment for Glaucoma

Laser therapy can be appropriate for patients with Glaucoma who are under medication and need additional treatment or who have a more progressive form of Glaucoma. There are mainly three types of Laser treatments doctors use to perform.

Laser trabeculoplasty

It is a painless procedure where doctors use laser beams to stretch the drainage loop of patients' eyes so the eye fluid can flow out a better way. It is just a 20 days procedure, and your ophthalmologist performs laser trabeculoplasty in his office.

Before the laser surgery doctor injects numbing drops in your eyes and holds a special lens on the eyes, the high-intensity ray of light invades through the lens. This phenomenon eventually triggers a chemical and biological change in trabecular meshwork tissue where the fluid gets blocked into the eye. The laser eases the drainage of the sap out of the eyes and releases it into the bloodstream.

Laser therapy may cause instant side effects such as mild pain and inflammation. Your surgeon may prescribe eye drops to relieve soreness and inflammation. He may ask you to schedule two to three follow up for monitoring after surgery.

Laser peripheral iridotomy

A laser peripheral iridotomy is the commonly used principle treatment for angle closure glaucoma. Ophthalmologists use this technique as a preventive measure against angle closure attacks, where pressure suddenly develops in the eyes. Patients with narrow angles found during eye examinations are a high probability of causing angle closure attacks.

Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT)

It is the advanced form of laser trabeculoplasty. This laser doesn't burn the tissue; instead, it vaporizes the pigment, which affects the cell in the drainage system, and improves the drainage space of the fluid from our eyes. As the laser is mild yet precise, the surgery can be performed precisely. Normal trabeculoplasty doesn't seem applicable to all patients, but selective laser trabeculoplasty is safe and suitable for everyone. It is the best laser treatment for Glaucoma, with a high success rate (~60-70%).