Abstract
Purpose
To clarify the correlation between temporal circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and macular ganglion cell complex (mGCC) thickness in glaucomatous eyes.
Methods
Seventy-seven eyes of 77 subjects were categorized as normal, early glaucoma and moderate-to-advanced (moderate) glaucoma. After the circumpapillary RNFL thickness and mGCC thickness were measured, the temporal mean RNFL and mean mGCC were compared within the three groups. The study also investigated whether there was any correlation between the temporal RNFL and mGCC thicknesses.
Results
In the glaucoma groups, significant thinning of the temporal RNFL and mGCC thicknesses was noted. With the exception of the papillomacular bundle (r = −0.078), correlations were seen in each of the early glaucoma mGCC and temporal RNFL sectors (r = 0.38–0.753). Correlations were also noted for the mGCC and all temporal RNFL sectors in the moderate glaucoma group (r = 0.425–0.809).
Conclusions
From the early stage of glaucoma, similar decreases of the mGCC and RNFL occured, and a high correlation existed between the two. Therefore, like RNFL, mGCC can potentially be used to detect the early stages of glaucoma. However, in early glaucoma eyes, the papillomacular bundle of the RNFL may be spared, even though mGCC thinning is present.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Quigley HA, Addicks EM, Green WR. Optic nerve damage in human glaucoma. III.Quantitative correlation of nerve fiver loss and visual field defect in glaucoma, ischemic neuropathy, papilledema, and toxic neuropathy. Arch Ophthalmol. 1982;100:135–46.
Quigley HA, Dunkelberger GR, Green WR. Retinal ganglion cell atrophy correlated with automated perimetry in human eyes with glaucoma. Am J Ophthalmol. 1989;107:453–64.
Kanamori A, Nakamura M, Escano MF, Seya R, Maeda H, Negi A. Evaluation of the glaucomatous damage on retinal nerve fiver layer thickness measured by optical coherence tomography. Am J Ophthalmol. 2003;135:513–20.
Wollstein G, Ishikawa H, Wang J, Beaton SA, Schuman JS. Comparison of three optical coherence tomography scanning areas for detection of glaucomatous damage. Am J Ophthalmol. 2005;139:39–43.
Ojima T, Tanabe T, Hangai M, Yu S, Morishita S, Yoshimura N. Measurement of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and macular volume for glaucoma detection using optical coherence tomography. Jpn J Ophthalmol. 2007;51:197–203.
Lederer DE, Schuman JS, Hertzmark E, Heltzer J, Velazques LJ, Fujimoto JG, et al. Analysis of macular volume in normal and glaucomatous eyes using optical coherence tomography. Am J Ophthalmol. 2003;135:838–43.
Wollstein G, Schuman JS, Price LL, Aydin A, Beaton SA, Stark PC, et al. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) macular and peripapillary retinal nerve fiver layer measurements and automated visual fields. Am J Ophthalmol. 2004;138:218–25.
Leung CK, Chan WM, Yung WH, Ng AC, Woo J, Tsang MK, et al. Comparison of macular and peripapillary measurements for detection of glaucoma. An optical coherence study. Ophthalmology. 2005;112:391–400.
Tan O, Li G, Lu AT, Varma R, Huang D. Mapping of macular substructures with optical coherence tomography for glaucoma diagnosis. Ophthalmology. 2008;115:949–56.
Tan O, Chopra V, Lu AT, Schuman JS, Ishikawa H, Varma R, et al. Detection of macular ganglion cell loss in glaucoma by fourier-domain optical coherence tomography. Ophthalmology. 2009;116:2305–14.
Allingham RR, Damji KF, Freedman S, Moroi SE, Shafranov G, Shields MB. Optic Nerve, Retina, and Choroid. In: Shields’ Textbook of Glaucoma, 5th ed. Philadelphia: Lippinscott Williams & Wilkins; 2005. p. 78.
Manassakorn A, Chaidaroon W, Ausayakhun S, Aupapong S, Wattananikorn S. Normative database of retinal nerve fiver layer and macular retinal thickness in a Thai population. Jpn J Ophthalmol. 2008;52:450–6.
Eriksson U, Alm A. Macular thickness decreases with age in normal eyes: a study on the macular thickness map protocol in the stratus OCT. Br J Ophthalmol. 2009;93:1448–52.
Garas A, Vargha P, Holló G. Reproducibility of retinal nerve fiber layer and macular thickness measurement with the RTVue-100 optical coherence tomography. Ophthalmology. 2010;117:738–46.
Garas A, Tóth M, Vargha P, Holló G. Comparison of repeatability of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness measurement made using the RTVue fourier-domain optical coherence tomography and the GDX scanning laser polarimeter with variable or enhanced corneal compensation. J Glaucoma. 2010;19:412–7.
Grewal DS, Sehi M, Greenfield DS. Diffuse glaucomatous structural and function damage in the hemifield without significant pattern loss. Arch Ophthalmol. 2009;127:1442–8.
Girkin CA. Principles of confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy for the clinician. In: Fingeret M, Flanagan JG, Liebmann JM, editors. The essential HRT primer. San Ramon: Jocoto Advertising; 2005. p. 1–9.
Chen E, Gedda U, Landau I. Thinning of the papillomacular bundle in the glaucomatous eye and its influence on the reference plane of the heidelberg retinal tomography. J Glaucoma. 2001;10:386–9.
Bron AJ, Tripathi RC, Tripathi BJ. Topography of the retina. In: Wolff’s anatomy of the eye and orbit, 8th ed. London: Chapman & Hall; 1997. pp. 454–8.
Kim MJ, Lee EJ, Kim TW. Peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness profile in subjects with myopia measured using the stratus optical coherence tomography. Br J Ophthalmol. 2010;94:115–20.
Bendschneider D, Tornow RP, Horn FK, Laemmer R, Roessler CW, Juenemann AG, et al. Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in normals measured by spectral domain OCT. J Glaucoma. 2010;19:475–82.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
About this article
Cite this article
Kita, Y., Kita, R., Nitta, A. et al. Glaucomatous eye macular ganglion cell complex thickness and its relation to temporal circumpapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness. Jpn J Ophthalmol 55, 228–234 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10384-011-0017-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10384-011-0017-3