Premium
Primary Open Angle Glaucoma and Vascular Risk Factors: a review of population based studies from 1990 to 2017
Author(s) -
Grzybowski Andrzej,
Och Mariusz,
Kanclerz Piotr,
Leffler Christopher
Publication year - 2019
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.1755-3768.2019.5077
Subject(s) - medicine , glaucoma , open angle glaucoma , intraocular pressure , ophthalmology , pathogenesis , diabetes mellitus , risk factor , ocular hypertension , epidemiology , migraine , blood pressure , vasospasm , subarachnoid hemorrhage , endocrinology
Purpose Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide, and as the proportion of those over age 40 increases, so will the prevalence of glaucoma. The pathogenesis of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is unclear and multiple ocular risk factors have been proposed, including intraocular pressure, ocular perfusion pressure, ocular blood flow, myopia, central corneal thickness, and disc hemorrhages. The purpose of this review was to analyse the correlation between systemic vascular risk factors and POAG pathogenesis based on major epidemiological studies. Methodology We used the PubMed database to identify studies including the term glaucoma in association with the following keywords : vascular risk factors, systemic risk factors, blood pressure, systemic hypertension, systemic hypotension, diabetes, dipping, vasospasm, age and migraine . Results The search identified 270 unique articles. After including only relevant English‐language articles only 66 studies were reported in the analysis. Reports presenting the association between POAG and systemic vascular risk factors included a total of over 50,000 patients. Several epidemiological studies confirmed the importance of vascular risk factors in the pathogenesis and progression of glaucomatous optic neuropathy, including hypertension, blood pressure dipping. The pooled analysis confirmed hypertension as the most significant risk factor for primary open angle glaucoma. Conclusions Vascular risk factors play a significant role in the pathogenesis and progression of glaucoma. The association between POAG and diabetes mellitus type 2 or migraine still needs to be evaluated in future studies.