ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to compare measurements of values such as the anterior chamber angle (ACA), thickness of the iris, thickness of the cornea, and the angle-opening distance (AOD) of eyes with primary open-angle glaucoma before and after undergoing phacoemulsification with intraocular lens implantation using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). METHODS: The data of 49 eyes of 39 glaucoma patients who presented at the Cataract and Refractive Surgery Unit of the Ophthalmology Clinic of , University of Health Sciences, Istanbul Traning and Research Hospital between December 2014 and May 2016 were included in the study. All of the patients were examined with AS-OCT. All of the preoperative and postoperative data were evaluated statistically using a paired t-test and the Wilcoxon test. A statistical significance level of alpha was accepted as p<0.05. RESULTS: The AS-OCT measurements of 39 patients (22 women and 17 men) with primary open-angle glaucoma were included in the study. The median age of the total population was 67±8years. No statistically significant difference was found between preoperative and postoperative measurements of the corneal thickness (p=0.480). However, there was a statistically significant difference between measurements of the ACA, AOD (500µm and 750µm), thickness of the iris curvature, anterior chamber depth, and trabecular-iris space area before and after the operation (p<0.001). Intraocular pressure (IOP) levels decreased significantly in the first and third months after surgery (p=0.019; p=0.003, respectively). CONCLUSION: This study with AS-OCT imaging has confirmed after phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation in patients with glaucoma, the angle of the anterior chamber grows wider. As a result, IOP decreases and becomes easier to control.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate and compare anterior segment changes in patients taking alpha-1 (α1) blockers (tamsulosin, terazosin, doxazosin, alfuzosin) for benign prostatic hypertrophy, during drug intake and drug-free period, using ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this prospective study, UBM was done before and after pupil dilatation in 31 phakic eyes of 19 male patients taking α1-blockers. Undilated and dilated UBM was repeated before cataract extraction, after stopping the drug for 10 days. On ideal images, pupil diameter (PD), anterior chamber depth (ACD), anterior chamber angle (ACA), and angle opening distances at points 500 µm and 250 µm from the scleral spur (AOD500 and AOD250) values were noted and changes in parameters were evaluated to reveal any changes that occurred after discontinuing the drug. No patient in the study was previously or currently using any other α1-adrenergic antagonist medication. Exclusion criteria for all patients included a history of diabetes mellitus, systemic hypertension, glaucoma, pseudoexfoliation syndrome, chronic use of medicated eye drops, and previous ocular surgery. RESULTS: PD, ACD, ACA, AOD500 and AOD250 values measured before pupil dilatation in the drug-free period were not significantly different from those measured during α-blocker intake (p>0.05). In dilated eyes, the mean value of AOD500 was 0.35±0.08 mm during drug usage and 0.39±0.08 mm in the drug-free period. The mean value of AOD250 was 0.23±0.06 mm during drug usage and 0.26±0.07 mm after discontinuation. These increments were statistically significant (p<0.05, z=-3.699, z=-2.984). On the other hand, there were no significant differences in ACD, ACA, or PD values in dilated eyes after discontinuing α1-blockers (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: The interruption of taking α1-blockers in patients who have benign prostatic hypertrophy does not seem to influence anterior segment parameters generally. However, further investigation is needed.
