'Patients with diabetes, hypertension may be at high risk of developing glaucoma'

Washington, August 18 : A study by researchers at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center has indicated that individuals who suffer from diabetes and hypertension may have an increased risk of developing open-angle glaucoma (OAG).
Joshua D. Stein, M.D., M.S., a glaucoma specialist at Kellogg, led a research team that recently reviewed billing records of more than 2 million people aged 40 and older who were enrolled in a managed care network in the United States and who visited an eye care provider one or more times from 2001 to 2007.
The researchers found that people with diabetes alone had a 35 percent increased risk of developing OAG and those with hypertension alone had a 17 percent increased risk. For people with both diabetes and hypertension, there was a 48 percent increased risk of developing OAG, the most common form of glaucoma in the country.
The study focused on the possible associations between various components of metabolic syndrome - a collection of conditions that includes obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol and high triglyceride levels) - that affects one fifth of the U.S. population. The Kellogg researchers also examined how each component increased or decreased the risk of glaucoma.
While the researchers found that diabetes and hypertension increased the risk of OAG, the study showed that hyperlipidemia actually reduced by 5 percent the risk for developing the disease.Findings from this research may eventually lead to novel treatments for glaucoma.
"Patients who have diabetes and hypertension are already known to be at elevated risk for eye conditions like diabetic retinopathy, a condition that harms the blood vessels in the retina,' said Stein. "This study and others suggest that, for these patients, an increased likelihood of glaucoma is also a concern,' added Stein. (Agencies)


2011-08-18



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