Association between the use of glaucoma medications and mortality

To evaluate the relationship between glaucoma medication use and death.

This study uses longitudinal data from 2003 to 2007 on persons 40 years and older with glaucoma or suspected glaucoma enrolled in a large managed care network. Cox regression analysis was performed to estimate the hazard of death associated with the use of various glaucoma medication classes and combinations thereof. Multivariable models were adjusted for demographic characteristics and comorbid medical conditions.

Of 21 506 participants with glaucoma or suspected glaucoma, 237 (1.1%) died during the study period. The use of any class of glaucoma medication was associated with a 74% reduced hazard of death (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.26; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.16-0.40) compared with no glaucoma medication use. This association was observed for use of a single agent alone, such as a topical beta-antagonist (0.44; 0.24-0.83) or a prostaglandin analogue (0.31; 0.18-0.54), and for use of different combinations of drug classes.

After adjustment for potential confounding variables, the use of glaucoma medications was associated with a reduced likelihood of death in this large sample of US adults with glaucoma. Future investigations should explore this association further because these findings may have important clinical implications.