Abstract
Purpose: :
The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between the use of the statins class of medication and the intraocular pressure. The null hypothesis was that there is no association between statins use and the intraocular pressure.
Methods: :
The study population was a subset of 464 individuals entered in the electronic ophthalmic examination form in the private practice office of the author in Raleigh, NC. The data was originally entered in a computer-based form used to record and store complete ophthalmic examinations. The data was retrievable by a search function and was exported to Microsoft Excel to form a data set. The dataset was opened in JMP® (JMP® Version 7) statistical analysis software and analyzed. The patients using the following statins were identified: atorvastatin, fluvastatin, lovastatin, rosuvastatin, simvastatin, ezetimibe, colesevelam hydrochloride. Patients using glaucoma medications, or who were younger than 40 years of age were excluded from the study. The analysis population consisted of 247 patients. There were 28 patients in the statins user group, which included 11 women and 17 men. The non-statins user group included 144 women and 75 men. The mean age for the statins users was 62.5 and for the non-statins users was 61.75. The age range for the statins users was from 44 to 88 years of age. The age range for the non-statins users was from 40 to 90 years of age.The intraocular pressure of subjects who were using statins at the time of their complete ophthalmic examination was compared to the intraocular pressure of those not using statins. The difference of the mean level of the intraocular pressure of individuals using statins and that of those not using statins was subjected to a t test analysis to look for statistical significance.
Results: :
The mean intraocular pressure of patients using statins was calculated to be 16.179 mmHg, and that of the patients not using statins was 16.066 mmHg. The p value was calculated to be 0.8372. The mean of the statins user group minus the non-statins users group was 0.113; 95% CI( -0.2015 - 0.9761). There was no statically significant difference between the intraocular pressure of patients using statins and those not using statins. The null hypothesis was not rejected.
Conclusions: :
These results reveal that there was no statistically significant difference between the intraocular pressure of patients using statins and that of those not using statins. This has significance when considering how statins may act to prevent or treat glaucoma.
Keywords: intraocular pressure