Longitudinal analysis of age-related changes in intraocular pressure in South Korea

Abstract

Purpose To assess the changes in intraocular pressure (IOP) with age in South Korea Methods Subjects aged 20-79 who had been receiving health examinations at a university hospital were enrolled. They completed physical and ophthalmic examinations. Subjects with ocular disease that could possibly affect their IOP were excluded. The relationships between IOP and age, blood pressure, heart rate, body mass index, blood chemistry, and electrolyte were analyzed using a linear mixed model. Results Of the 33 712 subjects, 31 857 participants were enrolled. In a cross-sectional analysis, IOP also showed a negative correlation in all age groups (respectively, Po0.001). In particular, patients in their 60s~80s had a less steep decreasing slope of IOP with age than patients in their 20s~30s (correlation coefficient − 0.260 and − 0.168, respectively). In longitudinal analysis, negative trend was shown in the slope of tendency in total subjects. When analyzing the effect of gender on the relationship between age and IOP, females had a less steep decreasing slope of IOP with age than males by 0.05 mm Hg. With regard to systemic parameters, systolic blood pressure and heart rate were positively correlated with IOP (Po0.001). Conclusion IOP was significantly decreased with age, although the amount of change was small. In women and older age groups, IOP was less decreased than that of men and young age groups. In addition, IOP was positively associated with systolic blood pressure and heart rate.

Ten‐year changes of intraocular pressure in adults: the Liwan Eye Study

“…In the existing literature, longitudinal studies on age-related IOP changes have mainly been based on Caucasian and African populations, and reported an overall increasing trend of IOP with age. 10 A longitudinal Korean study reported an average of −0.065 mmHg change of IOP per year based on a large cohort, following up for 8 years. Nomura et al reported that IOP increased significantly with aging in both males and females in an 8 year follow-up, which is consistent with our findings.…”

“…2 Intraocular pressure (IOP) had been widely acknowledged as the most important modifiable risk factor for the development of glaucoma, but the reported age-related IOP change remains inconsistent. [7][8][9][10] Whether this is due to true aging effect or cohort effect is still in contention. [7][8][9][10] Whether this is due to true aging effect or cohort effect is still in contention.…”

“…[10][11][12][13] Therefore more populationbased longitudinal studies are needed to investigate age-related IOP changes. In current literature, limited longitudinal studies of IOP in Asian populations existed with Nomura et al found an increasing trend in IOP with aging, while Nakano et al and two other longitudinal Korean studies reported a decreasing trend.…”

“…3 Population-based studies among Caucasian and African populations have mostly showed a positive association between IOP and age, [4][5][6] while crosssectional studies in Asian populations reported an inverse association. [7][8][9][10] Whether this is due to true aging effect or cohort effect is still in contention.…”

Functional Anatomy of the Outflow Facilities

“…7 There are differences in ethnic groups, and both positive and negative relationships between increased age and IOP have been described. 8,9 Although the outflow seems to decrease with age, the production of AH may also decrease. 10 …”