RETINAL NERVE FIBER LAYER THICKNESS BEFORE AND FOLLOWING GLAUCOMA FILTRATION SURGERY USING OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY- PRE AND POST SURGICAL ASSESMENT

Abstract

Background: The thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer is measured at a distance of 3.5 mm from the center of the optic nerve. The presence of this thickness shift even in the absence of visual loss justifies ongoing observation of the afflicted eyes. Changes in the thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer are highly correlated with vision loss, making it possible to accurately gauge how glaucoma is progressing.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in intraocular pressure and the thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) after glaucoma filtration surgery.

Methods: A total of 36 individuals, spanning both sexes and falling within the age range of 37-64 years, were assessed, with a mean age of 53.82±12.94 years. Slit-lamp examinations, tonometry, gonioscopies, and fundus examinations were performed for the ocular examination. After that came filtration surgery (trabeculectomy), in which an opening was created in the drainage angle of the eye at 0–4 months prior to and 2-4 months after glaucoma filtration surgery, accompanied with a modification of intraocular pressure. The gathered data were examined statistically.

Results: All individual quadrants and the overall quadrant had a significant increase in RNFL thickness (p<0.05). With p = 0.067, the RNFL thickness rose for the temporal quadrant, going from 43.45±14.07 to 46.73±16.69. It went from 53.39±25.77 in the inferior quadrant to 60.92±30.70 (p=0.002) in the nasal quadrant, and from 47.91±19.30 to 54.47±20.11 (p=0.007) in the nasal quadrant. RNFL thickness rose from 52.58±17.38 to 58.50±20.18 for the entire quadrant (p=0.0001). Intraocular pressure dramatically dropped and RNFL thickness significantly increased for all age groups between 50 and beyond. In the current investigation, there was a substantial (p<0.05) increase in RNFL thickness for both males and females with lower intraocular pressure.

Conclusion: The current study comes to the conclusion that after glaucoma filtration surgery, RNFL thickness increases in tandem with a drop in intraocular pressure. Age and gender were likewise associated with this rise in thickness.