Effects of Different Body Postures on the Intraocular Pressure in Patients with Primary Angle-Closure Disease

Eyes with primary angle-closure disease showed higher intraocular pressure (IOP) in the recumbent postures including supine and lateral decubitus (LD) positions compared with the sitting position.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of different body postures on the IOP in eyes with primary angle-closure suspect (PACS), primary angle closure (PAC), or primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG).

This is a comparative case series of 31 patients with bilateral PAC disease, such as PACS, PAC, and PACG. The IOP was measured using Tonopen AVIA in sitting, supine, and right or left LD positions. Patients were instructed to rest their heads on the pillows in supine and LD positions. The eye on the lower side in the LD position was called dependent eye. The main outcome was the difference in IOP among different body postures.

Among the 62 eyes (31 patients), PACG, PAC, and PACS were noted in 44, 12, and 6 eyes, respectively. The IOP was not significantly different between the two eyes in sitting and supine positions, whereas the IOP was significantly higher in the dependent eye than in the nondependent eye in LD positions. Compared with that measured in the supine position, IOP differences of the dependent eye were higher than those of the nondependent eye when measured in LD position (right LD vs. supine, P = .02; left LD vs. supine, P = .01). In addition, when the study patients were divided into three groups according to their diagnosis, no significant differences were observed in the IOPs and IOP differences among the three groups.

Posture-induced IOP changes were comparable among eyes with PACS, PAC, and PACG.