May 2007
Volume 48, Issue 13
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ARVO Annual Meeting Abstract  |   May 2007
The African Descent and Glaucoma Evaluation Study (ADAGES): Racial Differences in Optic Nerve Structure
C. A. Girkin; J. M. Liebmann; L. M. Zangwill; J. E. DeLeon-Ortega; C. Bowd; F. A. Medeiros; S. Jain; C. Boden; R. N. Weinreb; ADAGES Group
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • C. A. Girkin
    Department of Ophthalmology, Univ of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama
  • J. M. Liebmann
    Department of Ophthalmology, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, New York, New York
  • L. M. Zangwill
    Hamilton Glaucoma Center,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • J. E. DeLeon-Ortega
    Department of Ophthalmology, Univ of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama
  • C. Bowd
    Hamilton Glaucoma Center,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • F. A. Medeiros
    Hamilton Glaucoma Center,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • S. Jain
    Biostatistics and Bioinformatics,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • C. Boden
    Hamilton Glaucoma Center,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • R. N. Weinreb
    Hamilton Glaucoma Center,
    Univ of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
  • ADAGES Group
    Department of Ophthalmology, Univ of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships C.A. Girkin, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., F; J.M. Liebmann, None; L.M. Zangwill, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., F; Heidelberg Engineering, F; Heidelberg Engineering, R; J.E. DeLeon-Ortega, None; C. Bowd, None; F.A. Medeiros, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., F; Heidelberg Engineering, F; Heidelberg Engineering, R; S. Jain, None; C. Boden, None; R.N. Weinreb, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., F; Heidelberg Engineering, F; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., R; Heidelberg Engineering, R.
  • Footnotes
    Support NEI EY13959-01 and The Eyesight Foundation of Alabama (CAG), EYU10 EY14267 and NEI EY 08208 (PAS) and EY11008 (LMZ).
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science May 2007, Vol.48, 3315. doi:
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      C. A. Girkin, J. M. Liebmann, L. M. Zangwill, J. E. DeLeon-Ortega, C. Bowd, F. A. Medeiros, S. Jain, C. Boden, R. N. Weinreb, ADAGES Group; The African Descent and Glaucoma Evaluation Study (ADAGES): Racial Differences in Optic Nerve Structure. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2007;48(13):3315.

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Abstract
 
Purpose:
 

To compare the structure of the optic nerve and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) between healthy participants of African Descent (AD; n=190) and European Descent (ED; n=194) obtained from the prospective, longitudinal, multi-center observational cohort study, ADAGES (n=1,224).

 
Methods:
 

384 eyes (1/subject) (324 from ADAGES and 60 from the Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study) were included that had a normal fundus exam, normal visual fields, normal optic disc stereophotos, and an IOP <22 mmHg. Optic nerve topographic information was obtained using CSLO and OCT imaging, and RNFL thickness measurements were obtained using CSLO, OCT, and SLP imaging. Categorical variables were compared using Fisher’s exact test and continuous variables with the two-sample Student’s t-test. The least-squared method was used for adjusted comparison accounting for differences in disc area.

 
Results:
 

The areas of the optic disc and cup were larger with deeper cups in eyes from individuals with AD compared to those with ED, while the neuro-retinal rim was larger in the AD group. These differences were not significant following adjustment for differences in disc area. The Moorefield Regression Analysis (MRA) performed with high specificity (99.4% AD, 100% ED), while the Glaucoma Probability Score (GPS) showed a lower specificity in the AD group (83% AD, 89% ED; p- 0.021)

 
Conclusions:
 

Significant differences in optic nerve morphology were seen between healthy eyes from persons of AD and ED and must be taken into account when interpreting results of diagnostic imaging in differing demographic groups. These differences are largely related to variation in optic disc area. Diagnostic methods that take into account differences in optic disc area, such as MRA, have a higher specificity in individuals of African descent.  

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Keywords: optic nerve • imaging/image analysis: clinical • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: biostatistics/epidemiology methodology 
© 2007, The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Inc., all rights reserved. Permission to republish any abstract or part of an abstract in any form must be obtained in writing from the ARVO Office prior to publication.
Copyright © 2025 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology.
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