Electrophysiological assessment of visual pathways in glaucoma.
OBJECTIVE
To assess nerve conduction in visual pathways in patients with open-angle glaucoma.


METHODS
Pattern-electroretinograms (PERG) and visual-evoked potentials (VEP) were simultaneously recorded in 16 patients with open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and 15 age-matched controls. The visual stimuli were checker-board patterns (the check edges subtend 15'; the contrast was 70% and reversed at the rate of 2 reversals/s).


RESULTS
POAG patients showed significantly higher PERG and VEP latencies (ANOVA: P < 0.01) and significantly lower amplitudes than controls; the retinocortical time (RCT: difference between VEP P100 latency and PERG P50 latency) was longer (P < 0.01) in POAG than controls and the longer RCT was correlated with the reduced PERG amplitude (r:0.798, P < 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
This suggests that POAG patients have an involvement of the innermost retinal layers and impaired nerve conduction in their visual pathways.
Parisi
V
V
Eye Clinic, University of Roma Tor Vergata, Italy.
Pernini
C
C
Guinetti
C
C
Neuschuler
R
R
Bucci
M G
MG
D000368:Aged; D004585:Electrooculography; D004596:Electroretinography; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009900:Optic Nerve / Q000503:physiopathology; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012160:Retina / Q000503:physiopathology; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000503:physiopathology*