Retinal Peripapillary Blood Flow before and after Topical Brinzolamide

Vol. 218, No. 6, 2004

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Original Paper

Retinal Peripapillary Blood Flow before and after Topical Brinzolamide
Michele Iester^a,b, Michele Altieri^a, Georg Michelson^c, Paolo Vittone^b, Carlo E. Traverso^a, Giovanni Calabria^a

^aDepartment of Neurological Sciences, Ophthalmology and Genetics, Clinica Oculistica, University of Genoa, and
^bDivision of Ophthalmology, G. Gaslini Institute, Genoa, Italy;
^cDepartment of Ophthalmalogy and Eye Hospital, Friedrich Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany

Address of Corresponding Author

Ophthalmologica 2004;218:390-396 (DOI: 10.1159/000080942)

Key Words

Brinzolamide
Confocal scanning laser
Glaucoma
Heidelberg retina flowmeter
Retinal blood flow

Abstract

Purpose: To study the effect of topical brinzolamide on retinal capillary blood flow by the Heidelberg Retina Flowmeter (HRF) in patients with glaucoma. Methods: Twenty patients with glaucoma were consecutively recruited. One eye for each patient was randomly selected. Patients were classified as glaucomatous if they had an abnormal visual field and/or an abnormal optic nerve head with an intraocular pressure (IOP) greater than 21 mm Hg without any treatment. After an eye examination, baseline retinal blood flow measurements were made with confocal scanning laser Doppler flowmetry. Blood flow and IOP measurements were then repeated after 1 month of treatment. Blood flow measurements were analyzed by using an automatic full-field perfusion image analysis (AFFPIA) program. The blood flow was calculated in the superior and inferior part of the optic disk. In each area, the blood flow was calculated as temporal area, the nasal area and the rim area as for software AFFPIA. Results: The mean age of the patients was 56 ± 7 (mean ± standard deviation) years. The mean IOP before treatment was 23.7 ± 1.5 mm Hg while the mean IOP after 4 weeks of treatment was 19.1 ± 2.2 mm Hg. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.01). Significant (p < 0.05) increases in retinal blood flow were found for the temporal and nasal areas between baseline and 1 month after the treatment. No difference was found between superior and inferior sectors. Conclusion: Topical brinzolamide reduced the IOP significantly and apparently improved retinal blood flow as measured by the HRF.

Author Contacts

Michele Iester, MD
Viale Teano 71/1
IT-16147 Genova (Italy)
Tel. +39 010 373 1131, Fax +39 010 353 8494, E-Mail iester@unige.it

Article Information

This study was presented in part at the ARVO Meeting 2001 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., USA.

Received: July 29, 2003
Accepted after revision: December 4, 2003
Number of Print Pages : 7
Number of Figures : 3, Number of Tables : 2, Number of References : 39

Medline Abstract (ID 15564757)

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