Evaluation of retrobulber blood flow of primary angle glaucoma and normal-tension glaucoma with color doppler ultrasonography parameters

Objective: Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is an important cause of blindness. Evaluation of retrobulbar hemodynamic may be helpful in determining the progression of POAG and normal tension glaucoma (NTG). In this study, we examined flow rates and resistivity indices of retrobulbar arteries by color Doppler ultrasonography (CDUS) in patients with POAG and NTG. Material and Methods: Thirty POAG cases and 10 NTG cases were introduced into the study. In addition, 15 normal subjects were included as a control group. The measurments were performed for ophthalmic (OA), central retinal (CRA) and posterior ciliary arteries (PCA) in all groups. Results: In both study groups, end diastolic velocity (EDV) values were significanly decreased and resistivity indices (RI) were significantly increased in CRA and PCA than to be in the control group. Their peak systolic velocities (PSV) were also decreased when compared with the control group, however, the differences were not statistically significant. There were no statistically significant differences in retrobulbar blood flow between the two glaucoma groups. Conclusion: This study showed that changes of retrobulbar blood flow in POAG and NTG diseases may play a crucial role in glaucomatous optic nerve damage and color CDUS is an appropriatenoninvasive imaging method in clinical follow-up of such patients.