ABSTRACT
Open-angle glaucoma (OAG), the most prevalent clinical type of glaucoma, is still the main cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. OAG is a neurodegenerative illness for which the most important risk factor is elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Many questions remain unanswered about OAG, such as whether nutritional or toxic habits, other personal characteristics, and/or systemic diseases influence the course of glaucoma. As such, in this study, we performed a multicenter analytical, observational, case-control study of 412 participants of both sexes, aged 40-80 years, that were classified as having ocular hypertension (OHT) or OAG. Our primary endpoint was to investigate the relationship between specific lifestyle habits; anthropometric and endocrine-metabolic, cardiovascular, and respiratory events; and commonly used psychochemicals, with the presence of OHT or OAG in an ophthalmologic population from Spain and Portugal. Demographic, epidemiological, and ocular/systemic clinical data were recorded from all participants. Data were analyzed using the R Statistics v4.1.2 and RStudio v2021.09.1 programs. The mean age was 62 ± 15 years, with 67-80 years old comprising the largest subgroup sample of participants in both study groups. The central corneal thickness (ultrasound pachymetry)-adjusted IOP (Goldman tonometry) in each eye was 20.46 ± 2.35 and 20.1 ± 2.73 mmHg for the OHT individuals, and 15.8 ± 3.83 and 16.94 ± 3.86 mmHg for the OAG patients, with significant differences between groups (both p = 0.001). The highest prevalence of the surveyed characteristics in both groups was for overweight/obesity and daily coffee consumption, followed by psychochemical drug intake, migraine, and peripheral vasospasm. Our data show that overweight/obesity, migraine, asthma, and smoking are major risk factors for conversion from OHT to OAG in this Spanish and Portuguese population.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To determine the effect of posterior capsular opacification (PCO) removal on anterior segment birefringence (ASB) and its influence on peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) retardation measurements obtained by means of scanning laser polarimetry. METHODS: In this prospective interventional study, scanning laser polarimetry was performed using GDx variable corneal compensation on 26 eyes of 26 patients who developed clinically significant PCO (after uncomplicated cataract surgery and with no other ocular pathology) both before and between 1 and 4 weeks after Nd:YAG capsulotomy. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), intraocular pressure, corneal polarization axis (CPA), corneal polarization magnitude (CPM) were compared using the Student t-test and Wilcoxon signed ranks test. Spearman correlations between changes (differences between values after and before capsulotomy) in the CPA, CPM, BCVA and RNFL data were also performed. RESULTS: PCO removal is associated with a shift in CPA (from 10.86 to 15.03 degrees, P = 0.004) and CPM (from 28.54 to 37.92 nm, P = 0.004). Significant correlations were found between changes in the parameters of ASB and BCVA. Furthermore, RNFL measurements (nerve fibre indicator, temporal-superior-nasal-inferior-temporal average and superior average) were also well related to the CPA and CPM shifts. CONCLUSIONS: PCO induces an inaccurate compensation of ASB which affects RNFL assessment. Thus, it is necessary to recompensate ASB after posterior capsulotomy.
