Prospective evaluation of the comorbidity of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with glaucoma

Yuan-Hsi Chan; Lan-Hsin Chuang; Chung-Chieh Yu; Yu-Lun Lo; Henry S L Chen; Pei-Wei Huang; Ling Yeung; Chi-Chun Lai

doi:10.5664/jcsm.9488

Prospective evaluation of the comorbidity of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with glaucoma

J Clin Sleep Med. 2022 Jan 1;18(1):47-56. doi: 10.5664/jcsm.9488.

Authors

Yuan-Hsi Chan¹, Lan-Hsin Chuang^{1

2}, Chung-Chieh Yu^{2

3}, Yu-Lun Lo^{2

4}, Henry S L Chen^{2

5}, Pei-Wei Huang¹, Ling Yeung^{1

2}, Chi-Chun Lai^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ophthalmology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Keelung, Taiwan.
² College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
³ Department of Respiratory Therapy, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Keelung, Taiwan.
⁴ Department of Thoracic Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taiwan.
⁵ Department of Ophthalmology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou, Taiwan.

Abstract

Study objectives: This study aimed to identify prospectively the correlation between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) severity, ocular microcirculation changes, and visual function changes in patients with glaucoma.

Methods: We prospectively enrolled patients with glaucoma who were willing to undergo overnight polysomnography. The enrolled patients were further divided into normal tension glaucoma, high-tension glaucoma, and control. Visual field progression was analyzed using sequential standard automated perimetry. Peripapillary and macular vessel density were assessed through optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-angiography). The associations between polysomnography parameters, OCT-angiography parameters, and visual field progression were analyzed.

Results: A total of 22 patients with normal tension glaucoma, 30 patients with high-tension glaucoma, and 24 control patients were enrolled. Through regression analysis, glaucoma was found to be an independent predictor of moderate-to-severe OSA (P = .035); furthermore, moderate-to-severe OSA was significantly associated with visual field progression (P = .008 in the high-tension glaucoma subgroup and P = .008 in the overall glaucoma). Additionally, OSA severity was negatively correlated with the ganglion cell complex thinning rate in the normal tension glaucoma subgroup.

Conclusions: Presence of glaucoma increased the risk of moderate-to-severe OSA compared with the control group. OSA severity was related to visual field deterioration in patients with glaucoma and further associated with structural progression in the normal tension glaucoma subgroup. Careful monitoring of the comorbid OSA status of patients with glaucoma is essential to prevent disease progression.

Citation: Chan Y-H, Chuang L-H, Yu C-C, et al. Prospective evaluation of the comorbidity of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with glaucoma. J Clin Sleep Med. 2022;18(1):47-56.

Keywords: glaucoma; obstructive sleep apnea; optical coherence tomography angiography; polysomnography; visual field.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Comorbidity
Glaucoma*
Humans
Low Tension Glaucoma* / complications
Low Tension Glaucoma* / epidemiology
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive* / complications
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive* / epidemiology
Visual Field Tests