The study was done to assess the effect of partial posterior vitreous detachment (pPVD) on spectral-domain OCT peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFL) measurements.
Spectral-domain OCT RNFL thickness measurements were the main focus of the study this they were obtained from 684 consecutive patients who were seen in the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Glaucoma Service. The researchers compared RNFL thickness measurements between 101 eyes of 101 glaucoma suspects who met inclusion criteria.
The total sample size consisted of 684 patients, out of the total sample 253 had pPVD in at least one eye. Among a subset of 101 eyes of 101 glaucoma suspects, average RNFL thickness was greater in eyes with compared to eyes without pPVD. Measurements were significantly greater in the inferior and superior quadrants, but not in the nasal and temporal quadrants. The difference in average RNFL thickness remained significant even when corrected for expected age-related decline in RNFL thickness.
The study concluded through its findings that on peripapillary spectral-domain OCT to have a pPVD, which was associated with greater RNFL thickness measurements. Judicious clinical interpretation of this finding on spectral-domain OCT RNFL thickness scans should be factored into the assessment of glaucoma suspects.
Reference: https://bjo.bmj.com/content/104/11/1524
