Influence of anterior segment biometric parameters on the anterior chamber angle width in eyes with angle closure

To predict angle narrowing in eyes with angle closure in a Japanese population using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) quantitative parameters.

AS-OCT was used to examine 118 eyes of 118 patients with angle closure and 40 eyes of 40 patients with open angle under dark conditions. After measuring the angle opening distance 500 (AOD500), anterior chamber depth, iris thickness (IT), iris convexity (IC), pupil diameter, anterior chamber width, and crystalline lens rise, multivariate regression analyses were performed for the AOD500 in each group.

With the exception of IT, significant differences were observed between the AS-OCT parameters for the angle closure and open-angle groups. Anterior chamber depth, IT, and IC were the explanatory variables associated with AOD500 for each group (P≤0.001). A significant negative association was found between IT and IC only in the angle-closure group (P<0.001).

This study quantitatively confirmed that shallow anterior chamber depth was a major mechanism of angle narrowing, and that both IT and IC had a strong impact on angle narrowing. Moreover, the negative association found between IT and IC in only the angle closure group indicated the existence of the stretch force placed on the iris by relative pupillary block.