Precis

Lower whole enface disc (coefficient: 0.02, P=0.03) and macular vessel densities (coefficient: 0.04, P=0.02) on optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) were significantly associated with faster rate of mean deviation (MD) decline.

Purpose

To evaluate the association between OCTA features and prior visual field (VF) progression in primary angle closure glaucoma (PACG).

Methods

In a cross-sectional study, 46 eyes of 31 PACG patients with 5 reliable VF examinations performed over ≥3 years of follow-up underwent OCTA imaging. Effect of clinical (age, sex, number of antiglaucoma medications, mean, and SD of intraocular pressure during follow-up), optical coherence tomography (average retinal nerve fiber layer and ganglion cell complex thickness) and OCTA (whole enface vessel density of disc and macular scan, deep-layer microvascular dropout) parameters on the rate of MD change was evaluated using linear mixed models.

Results

Average (±SD) MD of the baseline VF was -7.4±7.3 dB, and rate of MD change was -0.32±0.29 dB/y. Whole enface vessel density of disc and macular scans was 39.5%±8.1% and 38.7%±4.4%, respectively. Microvascular dropout was noted in 33.3% of the eyes. Multivariate mixed models showed that lower whole enface disc (coefficient: 0.02, P=0.03) and macular vessel densities (coefficient: 0.04, P=0.02) were significantly associated with faster rate of MD decline. Other factors significantly associated with faster progression in multivariate models were older age (coefficient: -0.02, P<0.05) and the presence of systemic hypertension (coefficient: -0.37, P=0.01) and diabetes (coefficient: -0.28, P=0.05).

Conclusions

Lower superficial vessel density measured using OCTA was significantly associated with faster VF progression in PACG. In these eyes, OCTA parameters can serve as biomarker suggestive of past VF progression.

Purpose

To compare the diagnostic abilities of vessel density measurements of the optic nerve head (ONH), peripapillary and macular regions on optical coherence tomography (OCT) angiography in eyes with primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) with that of the ONH rim area, peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and the macular ganglion cell complex (GCC) thickness measurements.

Methods

In a cross sectional study, 78 eyes of 50 control subjects and 117 eyes of 67 POAG patients underwent vessel density and structural measurements with spectral domain OCT. POAG was diagnosed based on the masked evaluation of optic disc stereo photographs. Area under receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) and sensitivities at fixed specificities of vessel densities in ONH, peripapillary and macular regions were compared with rim area, RNFL and GCC thickness.

Results

The AUC (sensitivity at 95% specificity) of average vessel densities within the ONH, peripapillary and macular region were 0.77 (31%), 0.85 (56%) and 0.70 (18%) respectively. The same of ONH rim area, average RNFL and GCC thickness were 0.94 (83%), 0.95 (72%) and 0.93 (62%) respectively. AUCs of vessel densities were significantly lower (p<0.05) than that of the corresponding structural measurements. Pre-treatment IOP (coefficient: 0.08) affected (p<0.05) the AUC of ONH vessel density but not of any other vessel density or structural measurements.

Conclusions

Diagnostic abilities of ONH, peripapillary and the macular vessel densities in POAG were significantly lower than ONH rim area, peripapillary RNFL and macular GCC measurements respectively. At fixed levels of glaucoma severity, the diagnostic ability of the ONH vessel density was significantly greater in eyes with higher pre-treatment IOP.

Purpose

To compare the prevalence of choroidal microvasculature dropout (CMvD) in pseudoexfoliation glaucoma (PXG) and disease severity-matched primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) eyes.

Methods

In a cross-sectional study, 39 eyes with PXG (33 patients) and 39 glaucoma severity-matched POAG eyes (34 patients) underwent visual fields, optical coherence tomography and optical coherence tomography angiography examination. Peripapillary vessel density (VD) was evaluated from the radial peripapillary capillary slab, parafoveal VD was measured on the superficial vascular plexus slab of the macula, and CMvD was evaluated on the choroidal slabs of the optic disc scan.

Results

The PXG and POAG groups were similar with respect to average mean deviation on visual fields (-12.1 vs. -12.0 decibel, P = 0.96) and average peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness on optical coherence tomography (71 vs. 74 μ, P = 0.29). Average peripapillary superficial VD (49.7% vs. 51.3%, P = 0.35) and parafoveal VD (44.8% vs. 45.8%, P = 0.33) were similar between the PXG and POAG groups. CMvD was seen in 18 PXG and 31 POAG eyes (46.2% vs. 79.5%, P = 0.002). On multivariate analysis that accounted for the severity of glaucoma, the odds of CMvD was significantly lower in the PXG group when compared with the POAG group (odds ratio: 0.18-0.21, P < 0.01).

Conclusions

The prevalence of CMvD was significantly lower in the PXG eyes when compared with the POAG eyes.