Importance Glaucoma is a worldwide leading cause of irreversible vision loss. Because it may be asymptomatic until a relatively late stage, diagnosis is frequently delayed. A general understanding of the disease pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment may assist primary care physicians in referring high-risk patients for comprehensive ophthalmologic examination and in more actively participating in the care of patients affected by this condition. Objective To describe current evidence regarding the pathophysiology and treatment of open-angle glaucoma and angle-closure glaucoma. Evidence Review A literature search was conducted using MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and manuscript references for studies published in English between January 2000 and September 2013 on the topics open-angle glaucoma and angle-closure glaucoma. From the 4334 abstracts screened, 210 articles were selected that contained information on pathophysiology and treatment with relevance to primary care physicians. Findings The glaucomas are a group of progressive optic neuropathies characterized by degeneration of retinal ganglion cells and resulting changes in the optic nerve head. Loss of ganglion cells is related to the level of intraocular pressure, but other factors may also play a role. Reduction of intraocular pressure is the only proven method to treat the disease. Although treatment is usually initiated with ocular hypotensive drops, laser trabeculoplasty and surgery may also be used to slow disease progression. Conclusions and Relevance Primary care physicians can play an important role in the diagnosis of glaucoma by referring patients with positive family history or with suspicious optic nerve head findings for complete ophthalmologic examination. They can improve treatment outcomes by reinforcing the importance of medication adherence and persistence and by recognizing adverse reactions from glaucoma medications and surgeries.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/articlepdf/1869215/jrv140004.pdf

The Pathophysiology and Treatment of Glaucoma: A Review

Primary open-angle glaucoma.

Objective: To assess factors for progression in the Early Manifest Glaucoma Trial (EMGT), including the effect of EMGT treatment. Setting/Participants: Two hundred fifty-five open-angle glaucoma patients randomized to argon laser trabeculoplasty plus topical betaxolol or no immediate treatment (129 treated; 126 controls) and followed up every 3 months. Methods: Progression was determined by perimetric and photographic optic disc criteria. Patient-based risk of progression was evaluated using Cox proportional hazard regression models and was expressed as hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results: After 6 years, 53% of patients progressed. In multivariate analyses, progression risk was halved by treatment (HR=0.50; 95% CI, 0.35-0.71). Predictive baseline factors were higher intraocular pressure (IOP) (ie, the higher the baseline IOP, the higher the risk), exfoliation, and having both eyes eligible (each of the latter 2 factors doubled the risk), as well as worse mean deviation and older age. Progression risk decreased by about 10% with each millimeter of mercury of IOP reduction from baseline to the first follow-up visit (HR=0.90 per millimeter of mercury decrease; 95% CI, 0.86-0.94). The first IOP at that visit (3 months' follow-up) was also related to progression (HR=1.11 per millimeter of mercury higher; 95% CI, 1.06-1.17), as was the mean IOP at follow-up (HR=1.13 per millimeter of mercury higher; 95% CI, 1.07-1.19). The percent of patient follow-up visits with disc hemorrhages was also related to progression (HR=1.02 per percent higher; 95% CI, 1.01-1.03). No other factors were identified. Conclusions: Patients treated in the EMGT had half of the progression risk of control patients. The magnitude of initial IOP reduction was a major factor influencing outcome. Progression was also increased with higher baseline IOP, exfoliation, bilateral disease, worse mean deviation, and older age, as well as frequent disc hemorrhages during follow-up. Each higher (or lower) millimeter of mercury of IOP on follow-up was associated with an approximate 10% increased (or decreased) risk of progression.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaophthalmology/articlepdf/415002/ecs20139.pdf

Factors for glaucoma progression and the effect of treatment: the early manifest glaucoma trial.

Predictors of long-term progression in the early manifest glaucoma trial.

Many important eye diseases as well as systemic diseases manifest themselves in the retina. While a number of other anatomical structures contribute to the process of vision, this review focuses on retinal imaging and image analysis. Following a brief overview of the most prevalent causes of blindness in the industrialized world that includes age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma, the review is devoted to retinal imaging and image analysis methods and their clinical implications. Methods for 2-D fundus imaging and techniques for 3-D optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging are reviewed. Special attention is given to quantitative techniques for analysis of fundus photographs with a focus on clinically relevant assessment of retinal vasculature, identification of retinal lesions, assessment of optic nerve head (ONH) shape, building retinal atlases, and to automated methods for population screening for retinal diseases. A separate section is devoted to 3-D analysis of OCT images, describing methods for segmentation and analysis of retinal layers, retinal vasculature, and 2-D/3-D detection of symptomatic exudate-associated derangements, as well as to OCT-based analysis of ONH morphology and shape. Throughout the paper, aspects of image acquisition, image analysis, and clinical relevance are treated together considering their mutually interlinked relationships.

/pdf/retinal-imaging-and-image-analysis-ejwwlvx70d.pdf

Retinal Imaging and Image Analysis

Early manifest glaucoma trial group. reduction of intraocular pressure and glaucoma progression: results from the early manifest glaucoma trial

Objective: To assess factors for progression in the Early Manifest Glaucoma Trial (EMGT), including the effect of EMGT treatment. Setting/Participants: Two hundred fifty-five openangle glaucoma patients randomized to argon laser trabeculoplasty plus topical betaxolol or no immediate treatment (129 treated; 126 controls) and followed up every 3 months. Methods: Progression was determined by perimetric and photographic optic disc criteria. Patient-based risk of progression was evaluated using Cox proportional hazard regression models and was expressed as hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results: After 6 years, 53% of patients progressed. In multivariate analyses, progression risk was halved by treatment (HR =0 .50; 95% CI, 0.35-0.71). Predictive baseline factors were higher intraocular pressure (IOP) (ie, the higher the baseline IOP, the higher the risk), exfoliation, and having both eyes eligible (each of the latter 2 factors doubled the risk), as well as worse mean deviation and older age. Progression risk decreased by about 10% with each millimeter of mercury of IOP reduction from baseline to the first follow-up visit (HR=0.90 per millimeter of mercury decrease; 95% CI, 0.86-0.94). The first IOP at that visit (3 months’ follow-up) was also related to progression (HR=1.11 per millimeter of mercury higher; 95% CI, 1.06-1.17), as was the mean IOP at follow-up (HR=1.13 per millimeter of mercury higher; 95% CI, 1.07-1.19). The percent of patient follow-up visits with disc hemorrhages was also related to progression (HR=1.02 per percent higher; 95% CI, 1.01-1.03). No other factors were identified. Conclusions: Patients treated in the EMGT had half of the progression risk of control patients. The magnitude of initial IOP reduction was a major factor influencing outcome. Progression was also increased with higher baseline IOP, exfoliation, bilateral disease, worse mean deviation, and older age, as well as frequent disc hemorrhages during follow-up. Each higher (or lower) millimeter of mercury of IOP on follow-up was associated with an approximate 10% increased (or decreased) risk of progression.

Factors for glaucoma progression and the effect of treatment

Reduction of intraocular pressure and glaucoma progression

The invention relates to visual field tests, wherein a plurality of visual stimuli are successively presented to a test subject and the responses from the test subject are recorded in order to determine the test subject's perception of visual stimuli. With the aid of a confidence level function and the recorded responses, at least two visual field test values of different confidence levels are calculated. A result of the visual field test and an indication of the confidence thereof, which are based on the two visual field test values of each test location, are displayed to the user.

Boel Bengtsson

Papers

Early manifest glaucoma trial group. reduction of intraocular pressure and glaucoma progression: results from the early manifest glaucoma trial

Factors for glaucoma progression and the effect of treatment

Reduction of intraocular pressure and glaucoma progression

A method and an apparatus for performing a visual field test, and computer programs for processing the results thereof