Abstract
Purpose :
It has been suggested that there is a relationship between corneal hysteresis and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thinning in eyes with glaucoma, and ischemia of the optic nerve head tissues has been implicated in the progression of glaucoma. This study investigates the correlation between corneal hysteresis and optic nerve head tissue blood flow in patients with glaucoma, analyzed by location.
Methods :
In this retrospective study, we analyzed 471 eyes of 471 patients (223 males, 248 females; average age 60.5±12.9 years; average axial length 24.8±1.1 mm; average MD value -10.0±8.3 dB) diagnosed with open-angle glaucoma (OAG) at Tohoku University Hospital between March 2017 and September 2022. Corneal hysteresis, measured using the Ocular Response Analyzer, and tissue-area mean blur rate (MT), assessed through laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG), were evaluated both for the entire circumference and in four quadrants. Pearson’s correlation analysis was used to examine the correlation between corneal hysteresis and MT, with the strength of correlation indicated by coefficient β. Patients were also categorized into severe (MD ≤-12dB) and non-severe (MD >-12 dB) OAG groups to assess the impact of corneal hysteresis on blood flow using multiple regression analysis.
Results :
There was a statistically significant positive correlation between corneal hysteresis and MT (p<0.01), with Pearson correlation coefficients as follows: overall MT, β=0.22; superior MT, β=0.23; temporal MT, β=0.17; inferior MT, β=0.21; and nasal MT, β=0.21 (all p<0.01). Multiple regression analysis revealed a positive association between corneal hysteresis and both overall and superior MT in the non-severe group (p=0.04 and p=0.01, respectively), while no significant association was observed in the severe group (p>0.05).
Conclusions :
The findings suggest an association between corneal hysteresis and tissue blood flow in eyes with non-severe glaucoma, but this association is not evident in severe cases.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.