■ A new study to be conducted by West Virginia University (WVU) and the University of Pittsburgh seeks to optimize the use of selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) as first-line glaucoma therapy. The National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, recently awarded the universities $15.2 million to study how SLT can be better used to treat glaucoma.

“Our hope is that a brief low-energy laser procedure performed in the office once a year will effectively lower eye pressure without the hassle, expense, and side effects of daily medical therapy,” said the study’s principal investigator Tony Realini, MD, professor of ophthalmology and glaucoma specialist at WVU.

The study, a randomized clinical trial called “Clarifying the Optimal Application of SLT” or COAST, will compare standard SLT to low-energy SLT and will also compare retreatment performed as needed when the effect wears off to retreatment annually to maintain eye pressure control without the need for medical therapy.

The researchers plan to enroll more than 600 patients to receive treatment at up to 20 research centers. Patients will receive the laser treatment and their progress will be monitored over time. If the results of the trial are positive, the first-line treatment for patients suffering from glaucoma could change.