Rate of repeat laser trabeculoplasties higher for Oklahoma optometrists than for ophthalmologists

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A larger proportion of laser trabeculoplasties required one or more additional sessions when performed by optometrists in Oklahoma than when performed by ophthalmologists in that state, according to a study of health care data.“Oklahoma, as we all know, is one of the few states where optometrists have surgical privileges to perform laser procedures,” Joshua D. Stein, MD, said at the American Glaucoma Society meeting. “Optometrists in other U.S. states are actively lobbying to get permission to obtain privileges to do these procedures, so it is critically important to assess whether the outcomes of lasers performed by these two groups are comparable or not.”