Autonomic dysfunction in unselected and untreated primary open angle glaucoma patients: a pilot study.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the presence of silent cardiac ischaemic episodes and the status of autonomic function in consecutive, newly diagnosed and untreated primary open-angle glaucoma patients.


METHODS
Twenty-four consecutively diagnosed glaucoma patients and 22 age-matched controls were subjected to ambulatory 24-h blood pressure (BP) and electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring by using Cardiotens-01 (Meditech Ltd). Based on the ECG recordings, heart rate variability (HRV) frequency domain parameters [low-frequency (LF), high-frequency (HF) and LF/HF ratio] were calculated and analysed in the two study groups.


RESULTS
Glaucoma patients demonstrated higher LF and LF/HF values than normal subjects for both the active period (p=0.020 and 0.029) and the passive period (p=0.044 and 0.049 respectively). HRV parameters were similar in patients and controls suffering from silent cardiac ischaemia (p>0.05); however, glaucoma patients with normal ECG demonstrated higher LF and LF/HF values during the active period of the 24-h measurement period than control subjects characterized by the same cardiac activity (p=0.010 and 0.021 respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
Independent of a history and/or clinical signs of cardiovascular disease, glaucoma patients exhibit abnormal autonomic function.
Gherghel
Doina
D
School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, UK. d.gherghel@aston.ac.uk
Hosking
Sarah Louise
SL
Armstrong
Richard
R
Cunliffe
Ian Andrew
IA
D000368:Aged; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D018660:Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory / Q000379:methods*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005901:Glaucoma / Q000150:complications*; D006334:Heart Function Tests; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D010865:Pilot Projects