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Optic disc and retinal nerve fiber layer analysis in perimetrically unaffected eyes of glaucoma patients: an optical coherence tomography study
Author(s) -
DI STEFANO G,
DA POZZO S,
FANNI D,
RAVALICO G
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
acta ophthalmologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.534
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1755-3768
pISSN - 1755-375X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1755-3768.2008.509.x
Subject(s) - nerve fiber layer , optical coherence tomography , retinal , glaucoma , ophthalmology , medicine , nerve fibre layer , optic disc , tomography , radiology
Purpose To evaluate whether optical coherence tomography (StratusOCT) may detect early changes in perimetrically unaffected (PU) fellow eyes of glaucomatous patients by analysis of retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and optic nerve head (ONH). Methods 37 glaucomatous patients with unilateral field loss and 34 age‐matched controls were recruited. In glaucoma patients, PU eyes and the affected ones were analyzed separately. For each group, mean values (±SD) of age, mean deviation, pattern standard deviation, as well as RNFL thickness parameters and ONH measurements were calculated. Comparisons between fellow eyes of glaucoma patients and between healthy and PU eyes of glaucoma patients conducted with t test and Mann‐Whitney U‐test, respectively. Number of clock‐hour sectors flagged with probability levels <5% or <1% were collected and differences between healthy subjects and PU eyes of glaucoma patients evaluated on Fisher exact test. Results Global (Average Thickness) and sectoral parameters (Inferior and Nasal Average), Max‐min, as well as 2‐ and 6‐o’clock sectors resulted significantly thinner in PU eyes than in control group, whereas ONH analysis did not provide any significant difference between the two groups. Proportion of eyes with clock‐hour position flagged with probability <5% or <1% was not significantly different between healthy and PU eyes. Conclusion PU eyes of glaucoma patients represent a group at risk to develop functional impairment over time since an early RNFL thinning was identified on OCT.