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Imaging provides early, accurate assessment of glaucomatous changes in the optic disc
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COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Imaging technology provides objective, accurate and reproducible assessment of glaucomatous damage at an earlier stage of the disease compared with visual field analysis, according to a specialist here.
“Optic disc assessment is a crucial component in the diagnosis and follow-up of glaucoma. Traditional methods of evaluation by subjective analysis of stereoscopic images have quite a large margin of error,” Hans Lemij, MD, said at the European Glaucoma Society meeting.
Hans Lemij
In the European Optic Disc Assessment Trial, approximately 300 general ophthalmologists in 11 European countries were asked to classify 110 optic disc stereo photos as normal or glaucomatous.
“A huge variation was seen in judging the same optic disc photos. Overall accuracy was 80%,” Lemij said.
The same eyes imaged with GDx (Carl Zeiss Meditec) and Heidelberg Retina Tomograph were classified with significantly improved accuracy by a single measurement. Optical coherence tomography was not available at the time of the study, but it was shown in other studies to perform equally well.
“All three devices outperform most clinicians in classifying eyes on a structural basis,” Lemij said.
He also noted that, with the current technology, optic disc evaluation provides easier and more accurate diagnostic assessment than visual fields because it is easier to detect optic disc changes than subtle visual field changes in the early stages of glaucoma.
- Disclosure: Lemij has no relevant financial disclosures.