Clinical leadership in emerging therapy
Dr. Dalton Brothers is emerging as a national clinical voice on how photobiomodulation may support mitochondrial function, reduce oxidative stress and influence inflammatory signaling in AMD.
Dr. Dalton Brothers, O.D.
Founder · Clinician · Educator
Clinical focus
Retinal outcomes
Institute perspective
Mechanism to evidence. Evidence to patient care.
What the training covers
The full clinical training, in the order Dr. Brothers teaches it: how the therapy works, how to select and stage patients, how to run the protocol, and how to build it into an owner operated practice.
The archive
Every attended session stays available.
Original video, session-specific chapters and a searchable transcript.
Therapeutic framework
Tissue target, biological mechanism, patient selection, objective imaging and evidence, never a product demonstration.
Explore technologiesPBM / LLLT
Photobiomodulation, also called low-level light therapy or LLLT, delivers non-thermal visible and near-infrared light to metabolically stressed retinal and periocular tissue. The name brings together research previously described as red light therapy, low-level laser irradiation and LLLT.
IPL
Broadband, filtered light applied to the periocular skin and lid margin to address the vascular and inflammatory drivers of meibomian gland dysfunction.
RF
Controlled thermal energy delivered to periocular tissue, used alongside IPL where deeper and more uniform heating of the gland is required.
Clinical scope
Intermediate disease
Until recently the honest answer to the dry AMD question was supplements and observation. Recently published trials changed that: 51% of treated patients gained at least one line over two years, with measurable drusen reduction - and, for the first time, no geographic atrophy forming beneath resolving drusen.
Managed conservatively
Lesions can appear to grow early in treatment, but the expansion rate slows markedly against untreated progression. The target is the inflammation at the border between atrophied and healthy tissue, where complement cascade activity drives lesion growth.
Restaged at every entry point
Evaporative, aqueous-deficient and mixed presentations do not respond to the same sequence. Restaging first is what makes device outcomes reproducible - and photobiomodulation now covers the presentations IPL physically cannot reach.
Obstructive and inflammatory subtypes
Gland structure, not symptom score, determines how much recovery is realistic. Set that expectation before the first treatment.
Chronic, relapsing
Lid margin vasculature is the target. Patients need a maintenance plan, not a one-time course.
Beyond the traditional critical period
A 2012 German study reported improvement in 90% of treated amblyopic eyes, with half gaining three or more lines - well past the classic critical period. Dr. Brothers has replicated the pattern, including a 17-year-old moving from 20/100 to 20/40 and then 20/25 across treatment cycles.
Progressive myopia
Repeated red light therapy outperformed diluted atropine and orthokeratology on axial-length change in comparative trials - making it one of the more compelling options in the myopia control conversation.
Every point below comes from working through these therapies with practicing doctors, not from a brochure.
Ask about your clinicTraining highlight · From a dry AMD session
For early or intermediate macular degeneration, the treatment cycle moves from weekly sessions into monthly maintenance, with repeat imaging used to monitor response and guide the next phase.
Training highlight · From an ocular surface session
Different wavelengths serve different purposes: blue light targets surface bacteria, while red and near-infrared light reach deeper tissue and provide heat that can support meibomian gland expression.
Training highlight · From a practice-building session
When discussing a cash-pay therapy, introduce the price early and clearly so the patient can evaluate the option without anxiety about an unknown cost.
Get in touch
Tell us what you already offer and what you want to add. Dr. Brothers and the institute team will come back to you with a practical next step.