Effect of religious fasting on intra-ocular pressure

Abstract

Aim The objective of this study was to find out the effect of religious fasting on intraocular pressure. Methods Intra-ocular pressure by applanation tonometer was measured four times a day in 38 healthy young adult male patients. The mean age of patients was 29 years. Body weight was measured to assess the extent of dehydration caused by fasting. Results There was a statistically significant difference between the intra-ocular pressure during fasting and the non-fasting period (P Ͻ 0.001). There was weight loss ranging from 0.4 to 1.5 kg. Conclusion Fasting alters the diurnal intraocular pressure in the study population, ie young males 22-38 years.

Effect of altered eating habits and periods during Ramadan fasting on intraocular pressure, tear secretion, corneal and anterior chamber parameters

“…In our study, the mean IOP was 14.19±3.53 mmHg at 0800 hours and showed a decrease in the afternoon to 11.74±2.39 mmHg at 1600 hours during fasting period, whereas a 1.1 mmHg IOP rise was observed during the non-fasting period, which was nonsignificant. In the study group of Dadeya et al, 4 there was a 0.1 mmHg rise in the fasting group and 0.6 mmHg rise in the non-fasting group between 0900 and 1500 hours. They also noticed another 1.6 mmHg rise in 3 h between 1500 and 1800 hours in the non-fasting group.…”

“…There are only a few reports in the literature on fasting and IOP. [3][4] Kayikcioglu et al 3 showed that fasting did not alter diurnal IOP in healthy subjects. Dadeya et al 4 measured IOP four times during the daytime beginning from 0900 to 1800 hours with 3 h interval and found significantly lower IOP values at all time points during fasting.…”

“…They also noticed another 1.6 mmHg rise in 3 h between 1500 and 1800 hours in the non-fasting group. 4 None of the above studies mentioned the eating periods (midnight dinner and pre-dawn meal) and fasting duration before the first measurement. Higher levels of IOP at 0800 hours maybe related to the changed eating habits and periods.…”

“…[3][4][5] In these reports, the effects of changed eating habits and periods, and particularly the effect of pre-dawn meal, were neglected. Our results highlighted an important aspect of Ramadan fasting and suggested that fluid loading at the pre-dawn meal might increase the IOP and tear secretion in the early morning period.…”

“…[3][4][5] In the study of Dadeya et al, 4 fasting was shown to alter diurnal IOP in healthy subjects, whereas Kayikcioglu et al 3 could not find such a correlation. There is only one report evaluating the effects of fasting on basal tear secretion (BTS), which concluded that religious fasting does not seem to affect BTS in healthy individuals.…”