Eastern Shore Glaucoma Specialist Offering New Treatment for Disease
06-09-2010
Ophthalmologist Jason Yonker of Chesapeake Eye Associates now performs
the outpatient procedure at Atlantic General Hospital
His patients have been asking if he would perform the procedure for the
past year, but glaucoma specialist Dr. Jason Yonker wanted to wait until
more research was complete on canaloplasty, the new alternative to traditional
glaucoma surgery. Now, their wait is over.
Glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness, is most commonly caused
by increased pressure in the eye resulting from improper drainage of fluid
from the eyeball. Those with the disease first experience a loss of peripheral
vision and, if left untreated, eventual loss of all eyesight as pressure
is placed on the optic nerve. This form of glaucoma, called open angle
glaucoma, is controlled with medication and laser treatments.
Only if and when the disease progresses to a more dire state is it treated
surgically with a trabeculectomy because of the risk and discomfort involved
with the procedure.
Earlier results indicated – and the three-year study completed in
April has confirmed – that canaloplasty can be a more desirable
alternative, with quicker healing rates, greater success, less risk of
infection, and a reduced need for intraocular eye pressure-reducing medication.
As a result, it can also be offered at an earlier point in the disease process.
With canaloplasty, the top skin of the eye is cut and held back to allow
a catheter equipped with a miniature LED lamp and a suturing device to
be threaded into the Schlemm’s canal, the drainage system that runs
through the cornea. (In a healthy eye, fluid is released through this
canal to maintain optimum eye pressure. Glaucoma results when the canal
is blocked for some reason and that fluid is prevented from exiting.)
Sutures are then placed to hold the Schlemm’s canal open, effectively
widening the eye’s drainage system.
In contrast, the traditional surgery, which involves making an incision
through the cornea, creates an entirely new drain in the eye. Anti-scarring
medication is required after surgery and the procedure may need to be
repeated if the drain heals closed.
Certain risks still remain with the new procedure, including a sudden
drop in eye pressure due to the fluid leaving the eye too quickly. But,
that can happen with the traditional surgery as well. Also, “the
suture could theoretically weaken over time, but it has been shown in
other established procedures to be very stable over the long term when
used in eye surgery, so that is not likely,” said Dr. Yonker. “With
less potential risk, I am hoping that this procedure will help preserve
vision while limiting potential complications for my patients.”
Dr. Yonker is currently offering canaloplasty to patients who are good
candidates for the procedure. To make an appointment with Dr. Yonker,
call Chesapeake Eye Associates at 410-641-1744.
About Jason Yonker, MD
Jason M. Yonker, MD, is an ophthalmologist at Chesapeake Eye Center and
a member of the medical staff at Atlantic General Hospital, providing
ophthalmic care and surgical services to patients. Dr. Yonker is a graduate
of West Virginia University School of Medicine and completed his residency
and a fellowship in glaucoma and cataract surgery at Wayne State University/Kresge
Eye Institute in Detroit, MI. He has been invited to several conferences
as a guest lecturer and has published several articles. Before moving
to the Shore, Dr. Yonker served as an assistant professor of ophthalmology
at the Kresge Eye Institute, where he taught doctors in training the latest
cataract and glaucoma surgical techniques.