Atopic dermatitis as a risk factor for severe visual field loss in youth—a retrospective cohort study of glaucoma under steroid treatment

To assess the characteristics of glaucoma patients who received systemic or topical steroid treatment. Patients who received steroid treatment were selected from a total of 4256 patients at our tertiary referral center of glaucoma management between August 2011 and October 2017. Clinical characteristics of the subjects were extracted from clinical records. To evaluate the factors influencing highest intraocular pressure during observation (max-IOP) or mean deviations (MDs) of visual field at the first and last visits, univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed using a generalized estimating equation. Three hundred and eighty-two eyes of 196 patients were included in this study. The most frequent disease as the reason for steroid treatment was atopic dermatitis (58 eyes) followed by autoimmune diseases. The patients with atopic dermatitis were significantly younger (38.0 ± 11.2 years old, p < 0.001) and had lower MD (− 9.3 ± 9.1 dB at first visit, p = 0.01; − 10.6 ± 9.2 dB at last visit, p = 0.004) than those with other diseases. In multivariate regression analysis, age and MD at first visit, max-IOP, and atopic dermatitis were correlated with MD at last visit. The results of the present study suggest that patients with atopic dermatitis carry the risk of irreversible visual field loss even in youth. For earlier detection of high intraocular pressure, reinforcement of ophthalmological screening in management of atopic dermatitis should be recommended.