Retinal Vessel Diameter: 2. Its Correlation with Glaucomatous Optic Nerve Damage.

Kim, Ji Taek; Uhm, Ki Bang; Hong, Chul

Original Article

Journal of the Korean Ophthalmological Society 1998;39(7):1485-1493.
Published online July 1, 1998.

Retinal Vessel Diameter: 2. Its Correlation with Glaucomatous Optic Nerve Damage.

Ji Taek Kim, Ki Bang Uhm, Chul Hong

Department of Ophthalmology, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea.

망막혈관직경과 녹내장성 시신경손상과의 상관관계

김지택(Ji Taek Kim),엄기방(Ki Bang Uhm),홍 철(Chul Hong)

Abstract

Generalized narrowing of the retinal vessels has been recognized for glaucomatous and nonglaucomatous optic neuropathies. To evaluate how closely peripapillary retinal vessel diameters were related to functional and structural optic nerve damage in primary open-angle glaucoma, the data of the vessel diameters were correlated with intra- and peripapillary morphometric parameters and visual field indices. The diameters of the superior temporal and inferior temporal retinal artery and vein were measured at the opticdisc border from optic disc photographs of 234 eyes of 141 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and 139 eyes of 86 normal subjects. Only one eye per patient and subject was taken for statistical analysis. The diameters of the inferior temporal and superior temporal retinal artery were significantly correlated with the intrapapillary parameters, the peripapillary parameters and the visual field indices. The correlation coefficients were highest for the neuroretinal rim data (r>0.37, p=0.0001), followed by mean deviation, vertical cup to disc ratios, whereas total peripapillary atrophy data, zone beta and zone alpha data were relatively low. Concerning the vessel diameter, the highest correlation coefficients were calculated for the inferior temporal artery, followed by the superior temporal artery. No correlation was found with age and refraction. The results indicate that, in primary open-angle glaucoma, the vessel diameter redduces with decreasing area of the neuroretinal rim, increasing visual field defects and increasing peripapillary atrophy. Its evaluation can be helpful for the diagnosis of glaucoma and possibly also for follow-up.

Key Words: Retinal vessel diameter;Pripapillary atrophy;Primary open-angle glaucoma