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PurposeTo investigate the clinical significance of color visual acuity (CVA) in preperimetric glaucoma (PPG) and open-angle glaucoma (OAG).MethodsA total of 123 eyes of 73 subjects (22 normal eyes, 14 PPG eyes, and 87 OAG eyes; mean age: 44.9 ± 10.1 years, age range: 21-64 years) were enrolled. CVA was tested for red, green-yellow, blue-green and blue-purple with a newly developed test.ResultsThere was no statistical difference in clinical background factors, including age, sex, intraocular pressure, or spherical equivalent between the three groups. Red VA and blue-green VA were significantly worse in the OAG eyes than in the normal eyes (P = 0.008 and P = 0.015, respectively), although green-yellow VA and blue-purple VA were not significantly worse. Furthermore, red VA and blue-green VA were significantly correlated with MD in a group of eyes with either PPG or OAG (r = -0.23, P = 0.023; r = -0.25, P = 0.012, respectively), but green-yellow VA and blue-purple VA were not.ConclusionRed VA and blue-green VA were detectably worse in eyes with OAG, in close association with the degree of functional loss. This suggests that measuring CVA with the new color test described here may be a promising supplement to existing methods of detecting glaucoma and evaluating its severity.

PURPOSE:The internal limiting membrane (ILM) is a normal part of the retina, and the outcomes of ILM removal have not been fully investigated. ILM flap inversion is a recently developed technique that increases the success rate of macular hole (MH) surgery. Thus, we compared the anatomical closure rate and visual outcome in patients undergoing microincision vitrectomy surgery (MIVS) with ILM flap inversion or conventional ILM peeling for the treatment of MH. METHODS:The medical records of 90 eyes with MH were reviewed retrospectively. The patients were classified into two groups based on MIVS procedure (group 1: ILM flap inversion, 46 eyes; group 2: ILM peeling, 44 eyes). RESULTS:Preoperative characteristics were similar in the two groups, and there were no significant differences in 1 month- or 6 month-postoperative VA between the groups (P = 0.25 and P = 0.42, respectively). However, the surgical success rate was significantly higher in group 1 than group 2 (P = 0.04; 46/46: 100% and 41/44: 93%, respectively). Multiple regression analysis revealed that axial length and MH diameter were independent factors predicting 6-month postoperative BCVA in group 2 (P = 0.001 and P = 0.03, respectively), and that MH diameter was an independent factor predicting 6-month postoperative VA in group 1 (P = 0.03). Logistic regression analysis revealed that axial length (OR = 2.11; P = 0.02; area under the curve: 0.94; cut off score: 28.4 mm) was an independent factor indicating surgical failure in group 2. CONCLUSION:Our results suggest that MIVS with ILM flap inversion might be best suited to treat MH, particularly in patients with high myopia.

There is no consensus on the diagnosis or treatment policy for Preperimetric Glaucoma (PPG) because the pathogenesis of PPG is not clear at this time. Preperimetric Glaucoma Prospective Observational Study (PPGPS) is a first multicenter, prospective, observational study to clarify the pathogenesis of PPG. This article indicates study design, patient baseline characteristics, and analysis focused on optic nerve head (ONH) blood flow in PPG, as well as the intraocular pressure (IOP) -lowering effect and ONH blood flow-improving effects of Tafluprost.In this study, 122 eyes from 122 subjects (mean age: 53.1 ± 14.3) newly diagnosed as PPG were enrolled. The circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (cpRNFLT) was evaluated with optical coherence tomography (OCT). The ONH blood flow was measured with laser speckle flowgraphy. The therapeutic effect of Tafluprost was evaluated at Month 0 (ONH blood flow-improving effect) and Month 4 (IOP-lowering effect).The untreated IOP, cpRNFLT, and baseline Mean deviation (MD) value was 16.4 ± 2.5 mmHg, 80.4 ± 8.2 μm, and -0.48 ± 1.29 dB, respectively. In the site-specific visual field evaluation using the sector map, there was no appreciable site-specific visual field defect in the eye with PPG. The inferior region of cpRNFLT in 4-quadrant OCT sector analysis and 6 o'clock region in 12-o'clock OCT sector analysis was the highest rate of abnormality in PPG eyes. Topical administration of Tafluprost significantly reduced IOP from 16.4 ± 2.5 mmHg at baseline to 14.5 ± 2.3 mmHg at Month 4 (P < 0.001, paired t-test). In the linear regression analysis, there was a significant relationship between the increase of ONH blood flow and baseline value.PPGPS is a first prospective study focusing on the pathology of PPG. This study is expected to elucidate the pathology of PPG, with evidence useful for determining a treatment strategy for PPG.

PURPOSE:Innovative laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG) enables noninvasive evaluation of retinal microcirculation and the usefulness has been reported in the field of ophthalmology. LSFG has allowed us to measure the real time changes of retinal blood flow without pupillary dilatations and contrast media. Herein, we investigated the change of retinal blood flow in normal pregnant women during gestation using LSFG. METHODS:A prospective cohort study was conducted in 53 pregnant women who visited our institution between January, 2013 and July, 2014. Finally, a total of 41 participants without any obstetric complications were available for evaluation. Retinal blood flow was measured with LSFG in a total of 4 times during pregnancy (T1. 11-13 weeks, T2. 19-21 weeks, T3. 28-30 weeks, T4. 34-36 weeks) and mean blur rate (MBR), blowout score (BOS), flow acceleration index (FAI), and resistive index (RI) are analyzed from these measurements. Relations between LSFG parameters and mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) are determined throughout pregnancy. RESULTS:MBR showed no significant changes throughout pregnancy. BOS showed a tendency to increase in the 3rd trimester. FAI values showed a slight increase from the 1st to 2nd trimester while a significant decrease was noted in the 3rd trimester. RI exhibited no changes between the 1st and 2nd trimesters, values decreased significantly after the 3rd trimester. MAP was positively correlated with BOS, and negatively correlated with FAI and RI. CONCLUSION:The present study clearly demonstrated that profiles of LSFG parameters demonstrated a decrease of resistance in retinal blood vessels. These changes in indices provide a highly sensitive reflection of physiological changes in vascular resistance due to pregnancy. Thus, LSFG may be useful, as a non-invasive, diagnostic tool to detect pregnancy related disorders such as preeclampsia.

PURPOSE:To investigate the relationship between various characteristics of a normal population and laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG) measurements of mean blur rate (MBR) in the optic nerve head (ONH). METHODS:A total of 189 eyes of 189 normal subjects (93 male, 96 female, mean age 45 ± 14 years old, age range: 20-72) without any history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia or diabetes were enrolled. ONH microcirculation was measured with LSFG and overall MBR (MA), vessel-area MBR (MV), and tissue-area MBR (MT) were derived from these measurements. The statistical association of these measurements with characteristics such as sex, age, intraocular pressure (IOP) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) was then determined. RESULTS:There was a trend towards decreased IOP and MV and increased SBP with age (P = 0.002, P = 0.035, and P = 0.006, respectively). Furthermore, IOP, MV and SBP were correlated with age (r = -0.23, P = 0.011; r = -0.24, P < 0.001; and r = 0.30, P < 0.001, respectively). Separate multiple regression analyses of independent contributing factors revealed that sex and IOP contributed to MA (P < 0.001 and P = 0.002, respectively), sex, IOP, and age contributed to MV (P < 0.001, P = 0.003, and P = 0.024, respectively), while only IOP contributed to MT (P = 0.003). CONCLUSION:In a normal population, MBR was affected by IOP in both the large vessel and capillary areas of the ONH, but not by SBP. MV was also affected by age and sex, while MT was stable independent of age or sex.

PURPOSE:Recent studies have shown that the risk of cerebro- and cardiovascular events (CVEs) is higher in patients with primary aldosteronism (PA) than in those with essential hypertension (EH), and that silent brain infarction (SBI) is a risk factor and predictor of CVEs. Here, we evaluated the relationship between findings from laser speckle flowgraphy (LSFG), a recently introduced non-invasive means of measuring mean blur rate (MBR), an important biomarker of ocular blood flow, and the occurrence of SBI in patients with PA. METHODS:87 PA patients without symptomatic cerebral events (mean 55.1 ± 11.2 years old, 48 male and 39 female) were enrolled in this study. We measured MBR in the optic nerve head (ONH) with LSFG and checked the occurrence of SBI with magnetic resonance imaging. We examined three MBR waveform variables: skew, blowout score (BOS) and blowout time (BOT). We also recorded clinical findings, including age, blood pressure, and plasma aldosterone concentration. RESULTS:PA patients with SBI (15 of 87 patients; 17%) were significantly older and had significantly lower BOT in the capillary area of the ONH than the patients without SBI (P = 0.02 and P = 0.03, respectively). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that age and BOT were independent factors for the presence of SBI in PA patients (OR, 1.15, 95% CI 1.01-1.38; P = .03 and OR, 0.73, 95% CI 0.45-0.99; P = .04, respectively). CONCLUSION:PA patients with SBI were older and had lower MBR BOT than those without SBI. Our analysis showed that age was a risk factor for SBI, and that BOT was a protective factor, in patients with PA. This suggests that BOT, a non-invasive and objective biomarker, may be a useful predictor of SBI and form part of future PA evaluations and clinical decision-making.