What is an ophthalmologist obliged to do in case of "suspected glaucoma" diagnosis

Machekhin V. A.
The Academician S.N. Fyodorov FSАI IRTC “Eye Microsurgery” Tambov branch, Ministry of Public Health, Rasskazovskoe shosse, 1, Tambov, naukatmb@mail.ru; FSBEI HPE “Tambov State University named after G.R. Derzhavin”, Medical Institute, Inretnatsionalnaya str., 33, Tambov.

Fabrikantov O. L.
The Academician S.N. Fyodorov FSАI IRTC “Eye Microsurgery” Tambov branch, Ministry of Public Health, Rasskazovskoe shosse, 1, Tambov, naukatmb@mail.ru; FSBEI HPE “Tambov State University named after G.R. Derzhavin”, Medical Institute, Inretnatsionalnaya str., 33, Tambov.

Purpose of the study: To conduct a retrospective analysis of glaucoma suspects with different periods of observation. Material and methods. We analyzed 300 patients diagnosed with suspected glaucoma in the primary supervision in 2010, whose case histories were monitored until December 2016. The largest group included patients examined once or twice within 1 month (40%), from 2 to 24 months – 29%, from 3 to 5-6 years – 31%. Results. In the initial examination, terminal or advanced glaucoma was detected in one eye in 121 patients (43%). Transition from suspected glaucoma to the primary open-angle glaucoma, which was diagnosed only in the presence of GON occurred in 10 patients in the study group observed from 2 to 24 months (11.5%), in 6 patients in the study group observed up to 3-4 years (17%) and in 19 patients observed up to 5-6 years (33%). At the same time, in 30% of patients with long-term observation marked negative dynamics of optic disc parameters occurred which was not always accompanied by the negative dynamics of the central visual field. Conclusion. Suspected glaucoma may be diagnosed only as a result of 2-3 month study of an eye to exclude GON. A slow transition of patients with suspected glaucoma to the group with true glaucoma in most cases allows conducting a long-standing strategy of prevention of blindness from glaucoma using a full diagnostic examination, depending on the age of the patient.

ophthalmology, glaucoma, suspected glaucoma, GON, computed perimetry, HRT-study

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