Karnataka - Hubli-Dharwad   

Laser surgery to treat inflammation of tear glands

Staff Correspondent

`The procedure takes five minutes and does not need hospitalisation'

HUBLI: Vithoba Netralaya of Hubli has procured equipment to conduct laser eye surgery to treat dacryocystitis, inflammation of the lachrymal sac or the glands that produce tears.

In a release, Dr. Anant Revankar of Vithoba Netralaya said that already 20 patients suffering from dacryocystitis have been successfully treated. Patients suffering from the problem usually have watering of the eyes, redness of the eyes, discharge and pus from the eyes and swelling in the corner of the eye. The problem is caused on account of blockage of the duct connected to the nose, he said.

According to conventional method, surgery is the only answer. Normally it is done from outside or through the nose, which takes one to one-and-a-half hour. The patient will have to stay at the hospital for two days and take rest for at least a weak and the surgery will leave a scar on the face, he said.

But with the new instrument, the surgery will be over in five minutes and there is no need for hospitalisation, he said.

He said the disease is common in women and children. Laser eye surgery is best suited for patients with diabetes, blood pressure, heart problems and asthma, he said. The expenditure is almost equal to what is involved in conventional surgery, he added.

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