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Purpose : Systemic blood pressure affects optic nerve perfusion. The relation of ocular hypertension(OHT) and primary open angle glaucoma(POAG) with systemic hypertension has been a matter of debate in literature published so far. Our study was aimed to determine their relationship and to measure the strength of association between various measures of systemic blood pressure and ocular perfusion pressures.
Methods : This prospective case-control study was conducted at our center between November 2014 and October 2015. One hundred consecutive newly diagnosed patients of OHT and POAG were selected and compared with 100 age and gender matched controls visiting the ophthalmology department for routine assessment. Both cases and controls were subjected to detailed history and examination including blood pressure and intraocular pressure(IOP) measurements. Necessary inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied and statistical analysis was performed.
Results : Out of 100 cases 56% had POAG, 19% had NTG and 25% had OHT. Hypertension was present in 21% of cases and 13% of controls. Mean IOP amongst cases and controls was 23 mmHg and 17.3 mmHg respectively. Odds ratio of hypertension was 1.77 in patients of glaucoma compared to controls. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) (P, 0.66), Mean arterial pressure (P, 0.24), Systolic perfusion pressure (SPP) (P, 0.08) were not found to be associated with glaucoma, whereas diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (P, 0.04), diastolic perfusion pressure (DPP) (P, 0.05) and mean ocular perfusion pressure (MOPP) (P, <0.0001) were found to be associated with glaucoma. IOP in both groups, showed a positive correlation with SBP (r=0.212,P=0.03) and DBP (r=0.246,P=0.01) but there was a negative correlation observed between SPP (r=-0.026,P=0.79), DPP (r=- 0.1,P=0.31) and MOPP (r=-0.071,P=0.47)
Conclusion : Low MOPP, DPP, DBP were associated with increased risk of glaucoma. There was a positive correlation of IOP with SBP and DBP. However, hypertension was not found to be a statistically significant risk factor for glaucoma.
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