Study: Field loss in central 10 degrees common in glaucoma

NEW ORLEANS – Visual field loss within the central 10 degrees is common in primary open angle glaucoma even when 24-2 loss is mild, according to a presenter here at an American Academy of Optometry-sponsored press conference.

M. Karin Tran, OD, MS, and colleagues sought to determine the prevalence of 10-2 visual field loss in samples of glaucoma subjects and suspects and determine what factors predict the presence of 10-2 visual field loss.

Tran said at the press conference that this would help clinicians determine when it would be appropriate to order a 10-2 visual field.

Tran and colleagues studied 347 eyes of 175 predominantly male subjects who had primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), ocular hypertension or were glaucoma suspects. All had reliable 24-2 and 10-2 fields and retinal nerve fiber layer scans obtained within 6 months, she said.

“Fifty percent of subjects had 10-2 loss,” Tran said. “When the 10-2 fields were stratified by 24-2, the majority of subjects who had loss on 24-2 had 10-2 loss, too. Global retinal nerve fiber layer thickness was significantly lower in the eyes with 10-2 visual field loss.”

Tran said recent evidence suggests that central visual field loss may be underdetected and underappreciated. These study results show that measured visual field loss within the central 10 degrees is common in POAG even when 24-2 visual field loss is mild.

“Clinicians should consider 10-2 visual field testing in all patients with 24-2 VF loss,” Tran concluded. – by Nancy Hemphill, ELS, FAAO

Disclosure: No products were mentioned that would require financial disclosure.