title: Association between plasma endothelin-1 and severity of different types of glaucoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Endothelin-1 (ET-1) has been suggested to play an important role in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Herein, we studied whether increased levels of plasma ET-1 are associated with changes in the visual field and changes in optical coherence tomography (OCT)-measured retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in patients with different types of glaucoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  : Plasma concentration of ET-1 was determined in 31 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma, 18 patients with normal tension glaucoma, 16 patients with primary angle-closure glaucoma, and in 37 normal controls. In all participants, visual field testing was performed and OCT was used to measure RNFL thickness. The correlation between mean ET-1 level and changes in the visual field (mean deviation, dB) and changes in OCT-measured RNFL thickness in 1 randomly selected eye from each patient in each group was then evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The ET-1 level was 3.27±1.25 pg/mL in the primary open-angle glaucoma group (-14.09±8.76 dB), 3.12±1.46 pg/mL in the normal tension glaucoma group (-8.87±6.15 dB), 2.58±.22pg/mL in the primary angle-closure glaucoma group (-14.55±10.2 dB), and 1.53±1.49 pg/mL in the control group. Although mean ET-1 levels were significantly higher in all 3 of the glaucoma groups than in the control group, there was no significant difference in ET-1 level among the 3 glaucoma groups. In addition, no significant correlation was found between levels of plasma ET-1 and structural or functional changes in patients with different types of glaucoma.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  : There was no correlation between plasma levels of ET-1 and severity of glaucoma. The role ET-1 plays in the pathogenesis of glaucoma remains to be determined.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Science, China Medical University. hsin7850@url.com.tw
authors.forename: Hsin-Yi
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yue-Cune
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Wen-Chi
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hsien-Yuan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Lane
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D019332:Endothelin-1 / Q000097:blood*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D015812:Glaucoma, Angle-Closure / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D006068:Gonioscopy; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D057066:Low Tension Glaucoma / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000473:pathology; D009901:Optic Nerve Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000473:pathology; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence; D014065:Tonometry, Ocular; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology; D014794:Visual Fields
chemical_list: D019332:Endothelin-1