Anterior Segment Optic Coherence Tomography Changes Before and After Phacoemulsification in Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma

INTRODUCTION: The goal of this study was to compare measurements of values such as the anterior chamber angle (ACA), thickness of the iris, thickness of the cornea, and the angle-opening distance (AOD) of eyes with primary open-angle glaucoma before and after undergoing phacoemulsification with intraocular lens implantation using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT).
METHODS: The data of 49 eyes of 39 glaucoma patients who presented at the Cataract and Refractive Surgery Unit of the Ophthalmology Clinic of, University of Health Sciences, Istanbul Traning and Research Hospital between December 2014 and May 2016 were included in the study. All of the patients were examined with AS-OCT. All of the preoperative and postoperative data were evaluated statistically using a paired t-test and the Wilcoxon test. A statistical significance level of alpha was accepted as p<0.05.
RESULTS: The AS-OCT measurements of 39 patients (22 women and 17 men) with primary open-angle glaucoma were included in the study. The median age of the total population was 67±8years. No statistically significant difference was found between preoperative and postoperative measurements of the corneal thickness (p=0.480). However, there was a statistically significant difference between measurements of the ACA, AOD (500μm and 750μm), thickness of the iris curvature, anterior chamber depth, and trabecular-iris space area before and after the operation (p<0.001). Intraocular pressure (IOP) levels decreased significantly in the first and third months after surgery (p=0.019; p=0.003, respectively).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: This study with AS-OCT imaging has confirmed after phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation in patients with glaucoma, the angle of the anterior chamber grows wider. As a result, IOP decreases and becomes easier to control.