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Comparison of optic disk and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in nonglaucomatous and glaucomatous patients with high myopia.

Melo GB, Libera RD, Barbosa AS, Pereira LM, Doi LM, Melo LA

Glaucoma Service, Department of Ophthalmology, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, Brazil. gustavobmelo@yahoo.com.br

PURPOSE: To assess the optic nerve head (ONH) by optical coherence tomography (OCT), confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (CSLO), and the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) by OCT and scanning laser polarimetry (GDx) in highly myopic subjects. DESIGN: Observational cross-sectional study. METHODS: Thirty-five eyes of highly myopic individuals without glaucoma and 17 eyes of highly myopic patients with glaucoma were included in this study. All patients had myopia higher than 5.0 diopters and ocular axial length higher than 25 mm. In those patients without glaucoma, the intraocular pressure (IOP) was less than 21 mm Hg. RESULTS: Mean (SD) OCT cup-to-disk area ratio was 0.45 (0.30) and 0.58 (0.29) in the nonglaucomatous and glaucomatous subjects, respectively (P = .22); CSLO cup-to-disk area ratio was 0.27 (0.27) and 0.24 (0.23), respectively (P = .75); and OCT-RNFL was 65.2 (26.2) microm and 56.8 (28.6) microm (P = .43). CONCLUSIONS: OCT, CSLO, and GDx are not useful to discriminate nonglaucomatous and glaucomatous subjects that have high myopia.

Published 23 October 2006 in Am J Ophthalmol, 142(5): 858-60.
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