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Race Appears to Influence Decrease in Glaucoma Medication Following Trabeculoplasty: Presented at ARVO By Ed Susman FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla -- May 4, 2009 -- Patients who undergo a <1-minute laser procedure to control glaucoma appear to gain similar results regardless of race, but black patients are able to decrease postsurgery medication to a greater extent than white patients after undergoing selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT), researchers stated here at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) 2009 Annual Meeting. "We don't know why there should be a decrease in medication usage due to racial differences," said Lawrence Jindra, MD, Division of Ophthalmology, Winthrop University Hospital, Mineola, New York, in a presentation on May 3. "It is possible that for some reason, the laser works better in black [patients]; it is also possible that the black patients were overmedicated." SLT uses a combination of frequencies, which enables the laser to work at very low levels. It treats specific cells selectively and leaves untreated portions of the trabecular meshwork (ie, mesh-like drainage canals surrounding the iris) intact. For this reason, unlike other types of laser surgery, SLT is believed to be repeatable many times safely. SLT may also be an alternative for patients who have been treated unsuccessfully with traditional laser surgery or pressure-lowering eyedrops. Therefore, researchers investigated the effect of SLT on intraocular pressure as primary and secondary therapy in glaucoma patients of varying ethnicity. The team performed a retrospective chart review of 1,403 eyes from a consecutive case series of 2,056 eyes treated with SLT over 5 years. In eyes that had trabeculoplasty as primary treatment, black patients achieved an average intraocular pressure decrease of 28% (n = 90 eyes), whereas white patients achieved a 27% decrease in intraocular pressure (n = 791 eyes). In eyes that had trabeculoplasty performed as secondary treatment, black patients had a 24% decrease in intraocular pressure (n = 100 eyes), and white patients experienced a 23% decrease (n = 422 eyes). The differences in changes in intraocular pressure were not statistically significant between the ethnic groups for either primary or secondary treatment. Post procedure, however, a significant difference was found in the ability to reduce medication, with black patients able to reduce medication by 54%, and white patients able to reduce medication by only 33% (P < .01), said Dr. Jindra. [Presentation title: Five Year Experience of Effect of Race on Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty as Therapy in Patients With Glaucoma. Abstract 157] E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version