M. Harju et E. Vesti, Blood flow of the optic nerve head and peripapillary retina in exfoliationsyndrome with unilateral glaucoma or ocular hypertension, GR ARCH CL, 239(4), 2001, pp. 271-277
Citations number
46
Categorie Soggetti
Optalmology
Journal title
GRAEFES ARCHIVE FOR CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL OPHTHALMOLOGY
Background: The purpose was to study whether any differences exist ire the
optic nerve head (ONH) and peripapillary retinal blood flow between the two
eyes of patients with unilateral exfoliation glaucoma or ocular hypertensi
on (OHT) with exfoliation syndrome, Methods: This cross-sectional study inc
luded 50 patients. All had exfoliation syndrome with glaucoma or OHT in one
eye, and these eyes comprised the study group. The fellow eyes, all normot
ensive, comprised the control group. Blood flow was measured with scanning
laser Doppler flowmetry in the lamina cribrosa region, in the rim area, and
on the peripapillary retina. Multiple linear regression analyses were used
to identify any associations between different factors and differences in
flow. Results: Flow in the rim area was significantly higher in the study e
yes than in the control eyes, with a mean difference of 172 arbitrary units
(P=0.001). The difference of 40 units in the laminar area was of borderlin
e significance (P=0.065) and no significant difference was found in the per
ipapillary retina (P=0.530). In the study eyes, blood flow of the ONH lamin
a and rim area decreased with increasing glaucomatous damage, and treatment
with topical timolol was associated with reduced blood flow in the lamina
cribrosa and rim area. Perfusion pressure was associated only with flow in
the peripapillary area (P=0.021). Conclusions: Advanced glaucomatous damage
was associated with reduced flow both in the lamina cribrosa and the rim a
rea but not in the peripapillary retina. Treatment with topical timolol was
associated with decreased flow in the ONH.