title: Intervals between visual field tests when monitoring the glaucomatous patient: wait-and-see approach.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Published recommendations suggest three visual field (VF) tests per year are required to identify rapid progression in a newly diagnosed glaucomatous patient over 2 years. This report aims to determine if identification of progression would be improved by clustering tests at the beginning and end of the 2-year period.
  
  
  METHODS
  Computer-simulated "patients" were given a rapid VF (mean deviation [MD]) loss of -2 dB/year with added MD measurement variability. Linear regression of MD against time was used to estimate progression. One group of "patients" was measured every 6 months, another every 4 months, whereas the wait-and-see group were measured either 2 or 3 times at both baseline and at the end of a 2-year period. Stable "patients" (0 dB/year) were generated to examine the effect of the follow-up patterns on false-positive (FP) progression identification.
  
  
  RESULTS
  By 2 years, 58% and 82% of rapidly progressing patients were correctly detected using evenly spaced 6- and 4-month VFs, respectively. This power of detection significantly improved to 62% and 95% with the wait-and-see approach (P < 0.001). When compared with evenly spaced VFs, the rate of MD loss was better estimated by the wait-and-see approach, but average detection time was slightly slower. Evenly spaced testing incurred a significantly higher FP rate: up to 5.9% compared with only 0.4% in wait-and-see (P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Compared with an evenly spaced follow-up, wait-and-see identifies more "patients" with rapid VF progression with fewer FPs, making it particularly applicable to clinical trials. Modeling experiments, as reported here, are useful for investigating and optimizing follow-up schemes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Optometry and Visual Science, City University London, London, United Kingdom. d.crabb@city.ac.uk
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Crabb
authors.forename: David F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Garway-Heath
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D018450:Disease Progression; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005901:Glaucoma / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D058609:Visual Field Tests; D014794:Visual Fields / Q000502:physiology*; D057832:Watchful Waiting