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**bp77** · 11-Apr-2011, 17:03

Originally posted by maddy07 View Post

I wanted to share my IPL experience with anyone who has had treatment or may be considering it. I had my first and only IPL with Dr. Toyos a few months ago. Everything went fine during the procedure, and indeed it seemed within a few days that my eyes did seem to be less dry. Howevever, when I got on the plane to go home and in the days that followed, I noticed my eyes were more blurry. Initially I put it down to the acuvail drops I was prescribed (like xibrom but preservative free), but very quickly realized that I had incurred an onset of floaters. These floaters are located around the periphery of both eyes (as confirmed by my opthalmologist) which is the target location of the IPL device. They are very annoying and apparently there is no cure outside of vitrectomy. Coincidence? One in a billion I would imagine.

did u tell dr toyos about this? can i ask how old r u ? also, u can see dr bloom in long Iland for follow up. he is trained by toyos.

**maddy07** · 11-Apr-2011, 17:23

ipl and floaters

I just turned 40. Dr. Toyos said that floaters were not a side effect of the IPL. Anyone undergoing ipl comprises this "study", because to my knowledge there are no peer reviewed studies on this treatment.

**NeedMyEyes** · 11-Apr-2011, 18:58

Vitreous floaters

Floaters are caused by excessive heat reaching the globe...

I was afraid of this kind of thing happening. I was considering getting IPL myself, but knew there had to be some risks involved.

Sorry this happened to you. You're right - they are very difficult to get rid of.

**Rebecca Petris** · 11-Apr-2011, 19:04

If anybody else has had this happen (lurkers, anywhere?) I sure hope you'll speak up.

I'm sure I'm not the only LASIK patient with post-operative floater onset who is having a little deja vu here... All our doctors told us it was a coincidence. To this day it's one of the least talked about, least explained "coincidences" that occurred to a whole awful lot of lasik patients. For most of us it was just a nuisance (e.g. swatting at mosquitoes that weren't there) but for some they affected vision so much that they opted for floaters-only vitrectomy. (Talking of risky procedures.)

No one can say authoritatively what are or aren't side effects from IPL (statistically, I mean) when nothing's been published. I'm sorry for what happened to you.

**maddy07** · 12-Apr-2011, 05:43

ipl and floaters

Additionally, given that my eyes have returned pretty much to baseline since my IPL treatment, I attribute most (if not all) improvement in my dry eye sensation to the extremely robust gland expression post-IPL and not the IPL itself. Just my gut feeling on this. In terms of objective improvement in my dry eye situation, there is none. When I went back to the opthamologist, she noted that my eyes were in fact drier (more dry spots on cornea in both eyes). Not sure if this was caused by my using less drops or something else, but will go for regular check ups going forward.

**poppy** · 13-Apr-2011, 00:31

Eye docs are as uncaring about floaters as they are about dry eye, so I would agree with Rebecca that until more people have had IPL and those patients have specifically been surveyed about floaters, we won't know whether or not IPL causes them.

As far as I know no-one has ever successfully sued an eye doc for floaters however caused, so eye docs aren't likely to be warning people about the risk of floaters even if they thought there might be a link.

I have clinically severe dry eye and very severe floaters (inside of both eyes is a massive cloud of floaters). I warn that anyone who thinks "floaters are nothing compared to the dry eye" - that's not the case, for me anyway. If I had access to a decent eye doc for my dry eye, I would choose relatively under control dry eye and no floaters over a permanently cured dry eye and stuck with the floaters. The floaters are absolutely maddening and make me think about my dry eye even more.

**spmcc** · 13-Apr-2011, 13:59

Re: IPL and floaters

I should mention that I've had *tons* of IPL for facial rosacea.

I started with IPL and PDL (pulsed dye laser) in 1994. Over the years, I've had probably 30 full-face treatments and as many "spot" treatments (e.g., the T-zone). I've had metal contacts inserted in my eyes and had my upper lids zapped. Plus, I visited Stanford Univ and had 4 IPL treatments for dry eye (a la Toyos protocol).

I don't have any floaters (btw, I've never had a refractive surgery either).

**indrep** · 15-Apr-2011, 03:39

Needmyeyes

Floaters are caused by excessive heat reaching the globe...

I have spoken with several retina surgeons and I would like the source of this statement so I can do further research.

**maddy07** · 15-Apr-2011, 04:51

Not sure about the heat concept, but worth investigating. I was thinking generally that IPL may act as a trauma to the targeted area. For example, if it can successfully cauterize blood capillaries under the skin, who's to say that it might not shake up the vitreous in the same way that a blow to the eye can cause floaters.

**maddy07** · 15-Apr-2011, 05:53

One thing I should note is that, due to bad experiences with ocular steroids, I declined to use the steroid drops immediately after the procedure and for the next few days. Instead I used the non steroidal anti-inflammatory drop (acuvail) which is like preservative-free xibrom. This i did use for the required time. i know that the usual protocol is to use the steroid drops (for 4 or so days) in conjunction with the anti-inflammatory drops (for a few weeks). It has crossed my mind lately that the floater onset might have been worsened by inflammation from not taking the steroid drops. Just one of my theories.
During the IPL procedure, I did see bright flashes of light which is another reason i think that the IPL damaged my vitreous. Did anyone else see these flashes? I was concerned that the stick-on pads were not up to the job of adequately protecting the eye. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

**indrep** · 15-Apr-2011, 06:51

maddy,
Do the floaters truly float or are they fixed? Every retina surgeon I spoke with brough up this issue of exposure to the laser light possibly damaging the retina. This would of course create a fixed visual disturbance and not a true floating disturbance.

**maddy07** · 15-Apr-2011, 07:17

Mine are the floating type and not fixed. Folks who have had laser report the floating and not fixed type floaters though, so I don't agree that the retina need necessarily be involved. Light has to pass through the vitreous (2/3rd of eyeball) and may be absorbed by the vitreous without impacting retina. Again, just my own thoughts/observation.

**NeedMyEyes** · 15-Apr-2011, 08:55

What causes vitreous floaters?

http://www.miodesopsie.it/eng/site/floaters.asp

There is a website that mentions heat as a possible cause of floaters. However, I think I was misinterpreting "heat". I think this article refers to getting hot and sweaty and consequently becoming dehydrated. So they claim dehydration is the cause of the floaters as the vitreous contracts and pulls away from the retina.

So, I think I have to retract my above statement about "heating the globe" causing vitreous floaters.

Sorry about any confusion. I'll edit the post above. Edit <---- well, I tried to edit the above post, but I am unable to.

**spmcc** · 15-Apr-2011, 13:56

RE: seeing flashes of light during IPL

Hi Maddy07,

Yes, during all my many IPL treatments, I saw flashes of light. But I don't think our lids act as complete "black-out blinds", so IMHO, seeing flashes is normal.

Oh, and I should mention that I never used steroid drops after my treatments. They weren't prescribed/recommended by the IPL doctor at Stanford.

Cheers,
Sheila

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IPL and floaters

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