title: Can we measure the intraocular pressure when the eyeball is against the pillow in the lateral decubitus position?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the amount of intraocular pressure (IOP) change in the eye against the pillow in the lateral decubitus position (LDP).
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty eyes from 15 healthy volunteers (12 men and three women) aged 29 ± 3 (range 25-37) years participated in this study. Using the rebound tonometer (Icare PRO, Icare Finland Oy, Helsinki, Finland), the IOP of both eyes was checked in sitting, supine, right and left LDPs. In the LDP, the additional IOP measurements were taken with the lower eyeball against the latex pillow.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Baseline IOP in the sitting position was 12.7 ± 1.9 mmHg in the right eye and 12.8 ± 2.2 mmHg in the left eye. Ten minutes after shifting from the sitting to the supine position, IOP increased significantly (right eye: +1.4 ± 1.4 mmHg, p = 0.006; left eye: +1.8 ± 1.5 mmHg, p = 0.001). Changing from the supine to the right and left LDP increased significantly the IOP of dependent eye (right eye: +2.3 ± 1.8 mmHg, p = 0.001; left eye: +1.5 ± 1.8 mmHg, p = 0.011). When the dependent eye was compressed against the pillow in the LDP, the IOP of the dependent eyes increased significantly after 10 min (right eye in the right LDP: +4.1 ± 4.9 mmHg, p = 0.011; left eye in the left LDP: +3.4 ± 3.7 mmHg, p = 0.006).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The IOP was significantly elevated when the eyeball was against the pillow in the LDP.
authors.affiliation: Sungmo Eye Hospital, Busan, KoreaDepartment of Ophthalmology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Ho Soong
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ki Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Jin Wook
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Jeoung
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001512:Bedding and Linens; D001794:Blood Pressure; D005260:Female; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology*; D011312:Pressure; D012890:Sleep; D014065:Tonometry, Ocular
keywords: ICare rebound tonometer; eye compression; glaucoma; intraocular pressure