Correlation between the optic nerve pial diameter and radial peripapillary vascular changes in primary open-angle...

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Imaging
• Glaucoma Research

Background:

• Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is a leading cause of irreversible blindness.
• Accurate assessment of optic nerve head (ONH) changes is crucial for diagnosing and monitoring glaucoma.
• Standardized A-scan ultrasound offers a non-invasive method for evaluating ocular structures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure the optic nerve pial diameter (ONPD) in POAG patients using A-scan ultrasound.
• To investigate the correlation between ONPD and ONH morphology, vascularity, and visual field parameters in glaucoma.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study including 63 POAG patients and 62 healthy controls.
• ONPD measured via standardized A-scan ultrasound.
• Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) assessed retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and ganglion cell complex (GCC) thicknesses, and ONH morphology.
• Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) evaluated radial peripapillary capillary (RPC) plexus vessel density (VD).

Main Results:

• POAG patients exhibited a significantly reduced ONPD compared to controls (p < 0.001).
• Significant impairments in SD-OCT and OCTA parameters were observed in POAG patients (p < 0.001).
• ONPD showed significant correlations with RPC vessel density (p = 0.006), structural SD-OCT parameters (p = 0.001), and visual field parameters (p = 0.001).

Conclusions:

• Standardized A-scan ultrasound measurement of ONPD is significantly correlated with structural and vascular changes in glaucoma.
• These findings support the diagnostic utility of ultrasound in evaluating glaucoma optic neuropathy.
• ONPD serves as a reliable indicator of glaucomatous damage.