Objective To determine if retinal oxygen metabolism is different in glaucoma patients compared to healthy subjects and to determine if retinal vessel oxygen saturation is correlated with structural and functional damage in glaucoma patients. Methods This case control study included 28 patients (35 eyes) with primary open-angle glaucoma and 27 healthy individuals(41 eyes). Visual fields were measured with a Humphrey field analyzer. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was performed to detect the thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) in glaucoma patients. Retinal vessel oxygen saturation was measured in glaucoma patients and healthy individuals with a non-invasive spectrophotometric retinal oximeter. Statistical analysis was performed using independent t-test and Pearson′s correlation. Results There was no significant difference in retinal arteriole oxygen saturation between glaucoma patients and healthy individuals. However, the oxygen saturation in venules was higher and the arteriovenous difference was lower in glaucoma patients (t=4.017, P<0.001; t=-4.431, P<0.001). Retinal arteriolar oxygen saturation was not associated with age, intraocular pressure, blood pressure, cup-to-disc ratio, mean deviation (MD), visual field index (VFI), or RNFL thickness in glaucoma patients. The retinal oxygen saturation in both the venules and arteriovenous (AV) difference was not correlated with age, intraocular pressure, or blood pressure in glaucoma patients. Retinal venous oxygen saturation was positively correlated with the cup-to-disc ratio (r=0.418, P=0.012) and MD (r=0.504, P=0.002) and negatively correlated with RNFL thickness (r=-0.514, P=0.002) and VFI (r=-0.470, P=0.004) in glaucoma patients. On the other hand, the AV difference was negatively correlated with the cup-to-disc ratio (r=-0.390, P=0.021) and MD (r=-0.478, P=0.004) and positively correlated with RNFL thickness (r=0.385, P=0.022) and VFI (r=0.449, P=0.007) in glaucoma patients. Conclusion Severe glaucomatous damage is associated with increased oxygen saturation in venules and a decrease in the AV difference in retinal oxygen saturation, suggesting that reduced retinal oxygen consumption is related to the atrophy of the retinal nerve fibers.
Foster PJ, Buhrmann R, Quigley HA, et al. The definition and classification of glaucoma in prevalence surveys[J]. Br J Ophthalmol, 2002, 86(2): 238-242. DOI: 10.1136/bjo.86.2.238.
[3]
Quigley HA, Addicks EM, Green WR, et al. Optic nerve damagein human glaucoma. II. The site of injury and susceptibility to damage[J]. Arch Ophthalmol, 1981, 99(4): 635- 649.
[4]
Mitchell P, Leung H, Wang JJ, et al. Retinal vessel diameter and open-angle glaucoma: the Blue Mountains Eye Study[J]. Ophthalmology, 2005, 112(2): 245-250. DOI: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2004. 08.015.
[5]
Yin ZQ, Vaegan, Millar TJ, et al. Widespread choroidal insufficiency in primary open-angle glaucoma[J]. J Glaucoma,1997, 6(1): 23-32.
[6]
Ramm L, Jentsch S, Peters S, et al. Dependence of diameters and oxygen saturation of retinal vessels on visual field damage and age in primary open-angle glaucoma[J]. Acta Ophthalmol, 2016, 94(3): 276-281. DOI: 10.1111/aos.12727.
[7]
Garh?觟fer G, Fuchsj?覿ger-Mayrl G, Vass C, et al. Retrobulbar blood flow velocities in open angle glaucoma and their association with mean arterial blood pressure[J]. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 2010, 51(12): 6652-6657. DOI: 10.1167/iovs. 10-5490.
[8]
Lee TE, Kim YY, Yoo C. Retinal vessel diameter in normal- tension glaucoma patients with asymmetric progression[J]. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol, 2014, 252(11): 1795-1801. DOI: 10.1007/s00417-014-2756-6.
[9]
Olafsdottir OB, Vandewalle E, Abeg?觔o Pinto L, et al. Retinal oxygen metabolism in healthy subjects and glaucoma patients[J]. Br J Ophthalmol, 2014, 98(3): 329-333. DOI: 10.1136/bjophth- almol-2013-303162.
[10]
Michelson G, Scibor M. Intravascular oxygen saturation in retinal vessels in normal subjects and open-angle glaucoma subjects[J]. Acta Ophthalmol Scand, 2006, 84(3): 289-295. DOI:10.1111/j.1600-0420.2005.00631.x.
[11]
Olafsdottir OB, Hardarson SH, Gottfredsdottir MS, et al. Retinal oximetry in primary open-angle glaucoma[J]. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 2011, 52(9): 6409-6413. DOI: 10.1167/iovs.10-6985.
[12]
Vandewalle E, Abeg?觔o Pinto L, Olafsdottir OB, et al. Oximetry in glaucoma: correlation of metabolic change with structural and functional damage[J]. Acta Ophthalmol, 2014, 92(2):105-110. DOI: 10.1111/aos.12011.
[13]
Stef?觃nsson E, Pedersen D, Jensen P, et al. Optic nerve oxygenation[J]. Prog Retin Eye Res, 2005, 24(3): 307-332. DOI: 10.1016/j.preteyeres.2004.09.001.
[14]
O'Connell RA, Anderson AJ, Hosking SL, et al. Provocative intraocular pressure challenge preferentially decreases venous oxygen saturation despite no reduction in blood flow[J]. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt, 2015, 35(2): 114-124. DOI: 10.1111/opo. 12170.
[15]
Tezel G, Wax MB. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha in the glaucomatous retina and optic nerve head[J]. Arch Ophthalmol,2004, 122(9): 1348-1356. DOI: 10.1001/archopht.122.9.1348.
[16]
Yang X, Wei A, Liu Y, et al. IGF-1 protects retinal ganglion cells from hypoxia-induced apoptosis by activating the Erk-1/2 and Akt pathways[J]. Mol Vis, 2013, 19(9): 1901-1912.
[17]
Peng Y, Zhang J, Xu H, et al. Neuroprotective effect of protease-activated receptor-2 in the hypoxia-induced apoptosis of rat RGC-5 cells[J]. J Mol Neurosci, 2013, 50(1): 98-108. DOI: 10.1007/s12031-012-9876-4.
[18]
Hardarson SH, Gottfredsdottir MS, Halldorsson GH, et al. Glaucoma filtration surgery and retinal oxygen saturation[J]. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 2009, 50(11): 5247-5250. DOI: 10. 1167/iovs.08-3117.
[19]
Siesky B, Harris A, Cantor LB, et al. A comparative study of the effects of brinzolamide and dorzolamide on retinal oxygen saturation and ocular microcirculation in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma[J]. Br J Ophthalmol, 2008, 92(4): 500-504. DOI: 10.1136/bjo.2007.125187.
[20]
Siesky B, Harris A, Kagemann L, et al. Ocular blood flow and oxygen delivery to the retina in primary open-angle glaucoma patients: the addition of dorzolamide to timolol monotherapy[J]. Acta Ophthalmol, 2010, 88(1): 142-149. DOI: 10. 1111/j.1755-3768.2009.01604.x.
[21]
Traustason S, Hardarson SH, Gottfredsdottir MS, et al. Dorzolamide-timolol combination and retinal vessel oxygen saturation in patients with glaucoma or ocular hypertension[J]. Br J Ophthalmol, 2009, 93(8): 1064-1067. DOI: 10.1136/bjo.2008. 148460.