Posted on 08/23/2022 6:44:48 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
A trial researching treatment for patients with sight loss as a result of diabetes has shown a type of laser treatment to be both cost effective and non-invasive.
There are several treatment options offered to people with Diabetic Macular Oedema (DMO), including two types of laser treatment and eye injections.
DMO happens when blood vessels in the retina at the back of the eye leak, causing fluid build-up at the macula, which provides central vision. The leakage occurs when high blood sugar levels damage blood vessels.
Patients with severe DMO are treated with injections into the eye of drugs, known as anti-VEGFs. Patients with mild DMO can be treated with macular lase, which can be standard threshold or subthreshold micropulse laser. The former produces a burn or scar on the retina. The latter works without leaving a burn or scar or any type of visible change or mark on the retina.
The research found that subthreshold micropulse laser, which does not create a burn on the retina, was effective in maintaining a patient's vision. This also requires much less frequent visits to the clinic and is much more cost effective than treatment via eye injections, with eye injections costing almost ten times more than laser treatments.
Over the two-year period, the cost per patient was just under £900 (£897.83) for patients in the subthreshold micropulse laser arm of the trial compared to £1125.66 for those in the standard laser arm.
Professor Lois says, "Some ophthalmologists advise patients with milder forms of DMO to have injections of anti-VEGFs, despite laser being less invasive and requiring less visits to the clinic. Laser treatment costs significantly less than eye-injections of anti-VEGFs. With an average of ten injections, the total cost of eye injections per patient amounts to approximately £8,500 for the drug alone.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
My question is, what if the fluid is right at the retina’s optical focal point; will the laser interfere with that if they try and treat that spot?
People with the fluid at that spot have a blur right in the center of the field of vision.
The laser burns part of a blood vessel stopping the leakage. Your focal point is an imaginary point in space determined by your lens
A close relative has this edema, and the Dr told him that the conventional laser wouldn’t work because the edema was right at the center of the field of vision at the part of the retina where the focus point is located.
My question to the Dr is, what about the laser used in the study, would it take care of the edema and not disturb the focus-ability?
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/imagepages/19511.htm
Top picture is normal vision, and the light hits the retina.
Not too far behind or too far in front as shown in the other pictures.
The spot with the edema is right where the light hits the retina, the focus point, and it causes the center of vision to be blurred out.
BTTT.
I am getting injections to help manage fluid in the eye.
Thanks for the thread.
bump for reference
Thanks for posting. This appears solid, will follow its developments.
If there’s a ping list, please add me.
You mean the fovea which is the part of the retina where the very center most detailed part of your vision is. And no, you can not even use sub threshold laser there as it will damage your vision. Sometimes if the point of leakage is adjacent to the fovea lasering it will improve vision, but edema involving the fovea usually has to be treated by injection.
rmichaelj wrote:
“
You mean the fovea which is the part of the retina where the very center most detailed part of your vision is. And no, you can not even use sub threshold laser there as it will damage your vision. Sometimes if the point of leakage is adjacent to the fovea lasering it will improve vision, but edema involving the fovea usually has to be treated by injection.
“
Many thanks for the info!
The person I know who has this issue has the edema right at that spot, and the injections didn’t help :(
Too bad they can’t get at it from the side via a different method...
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