Abstract
Purpose: :
Recently published evidence has identified thinner Central Corneal Thickness (CCT) as a strong predictive factor for the conversion from Ocular Hypertension (OH) to Primary Open Glaucoma (POAG). The role of CCT in Pigmentary Glaucoma (PG) has not been investigated so far. We aimed to investigate a) whether there are any differences in the CCT between patients with Pigment Dispersion Syndrome (PDS), PG, Normal Tension Glaucoma (NTG), POAG and OH and b) whether there is a significant correlation of CCT and the stage of visual field loss (VFL) in general and in intra-individual analysis
Methods: :
CCT was measured consecutively in 75 patients with PG, 11 with PDS, 132 with POAG, 231 with NTG and 107 with OH using ultrasonic pachymetry. VFL was assessed using automated perimetry. Kruskal Wallis test was performed to compare CCT between all cohorts. Pearsons test was performed to determine the correlation of CCT and VFL.
Results: :
Mean CCT values differed significantly between OH and PDS (p=0.015), OH and PG (p=0.00029), OH and NTG (p=6.18e-05) and between OH and POAG (p=1.96e-07). There was no significant difference of CCT between PG and PDS (p=0.54), between PG and NTG (p=0.55) or between PG and POAG (p=0.40), respectively. There was no significant relationship between the stage of VFL and CCT in the whole cohort nor in individuals (p=0.72).
Conclusions: :
CCT values in PG do not differ from CCT values in PDS, NTG or POAG. We did not find a significant correlation between CCT and the severity of VFL in patients with PG. These findings suggest that PG patients with thinner corneas are just as likely to have advanced levels of VFL as PG patients with thicker corneas. We suggest that IOP is the most important risk factor in PG and that CCT may not play a major role in the pathogenesis of progressive glaucomatous damage in PG.
Keywords: clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: risk factor assessment