Significance of cilioretinal arteries in primary open angle glaucoma

Greater optic nerve and visual field damage has been reported in eyes with primary open angle glaucoma that also have cilioretinal arteries compared with fellow eyes that do not have cilioretinal arteries. The cilioretinal artery may shunt blood from the posterior ciliary arterial circulation away from the optic nerve, especially in the inferior and superior optic disc, where early glaucomatous damage often occurs. To evaluate these observations, we reviewed stereoscopic disc photographs of 122 patients with primary open angle glaucoma. Twenty-one patients had unilateral cilioretinal arteries and bilateral primary open angle glaucoma with an intraocular pressure greater than 21 mm Hg at presentation and a difference of 3 mm Hg or less between the eyes. Stereoscopic disc photographs and Goldmann visual fields were evaluated in a masked fashion. In glaucomatous eyes with comparable intraocular pressures, we found no significant optic nerve or visual field differences in eyes with cilioretinal arteries compared with eyes without cilioretinal arteries.