Abstract
Purpose :
To compare glaucoma patients’ clinical characteristics as identified through health screening and clinic consultation, respectively.
Methods :
The data on 547 patients who had undergone comprehensive glaucoma evaluation at the Seoul National University Hospital Ophthalmologic Center between January 2013 and December 2014 were reviewed. This cohort comprised 221 patients who had undergone health screening by non-contact tonometry and non-mydriatic fundus photography (Group A) and 326 patients who had been referred by other clinics (Group B). Based on the comprehensive evaluation, the subjects were diagnosed as either glaucoma suspect or definite glaucoma. The patients’ clinical characteristics were then subjected to inter-group comparison.
Results :
In group A (n=221), 58 patients (including 51 patients newly diagnosed with glaucoma) were diagnosed as definite glaucoma and 163 as glaucoma suspect. In group B (n=326), 179 patients (including 56 patients newly diagnosed with glaucoma) were diagnosed as definite glaucoma and 147 as glaucoma suspect. Group A (n=221) showed younger age ( p<0.001), thicker central corneal thickness (p=0.012), lower intraocular pressure (p=0.030), lower cup-to-disc ratio (average, vertical) (p<0.001, p<0.001), lower glaucoma severity (average retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, mean deviation, pattern standard deviation, average and minimal ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer thickness) (p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.001) compared with Group B (n=326). Among the newly diagnosed glaucoma patients (n=107) moreover, Group A (n=51) showed lower average cup-to-disc ratio (p=0.049), mean deviation (p=0.002), and average and minimal ganglion cell inner-plexiform layer thickness (p=0.018, p=0.046) compared with group B (n=56).
Conclusions :
The health-screening group showed, relative to the referred group, an early stage of glaucoma, both among all of the patients and among the newly diagnosed glaucoma patients. Health screening therefore can be considered an effective method for early detection of glaucoma.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2016 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, Wash., May 1-5, 2016.