Minimum Rim Width and Peripapillary Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness for Diagnosing Early to Moderate Glaucoma

Precis:In a cross-sectional study from a Brazilian multiracial population, minimum rim width (MRW) and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness measurements from OCT showed comparable diagnostic performance in discriminating early to moderate glaucoma from healthy eyes. Purpose:The purpose of this study is to compare the ability of MRW and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) measurements in discriminating early to moderate glaucoma from healthy eyes in a Brazilian population. Methods:A total of 155 healthy controls and 118 patients with mild to moderate glaucoma (mean deviation >-12 dB) underwent MRW and RNFLT measurements with optical coherence tomography. Only 1 eye per patient was included in the analysis. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) regression model was used to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of MRW and RNFLT, whereas adjusting for age and Bruch membrane opening area. Sensitivities at fixed specificities of 95% were calculated for each parameter. Results:Global RNFLT and MRW showed comparable area under the ROC curves [0.93 (0.91-0.96) and 0.93 (0.89-0.96), respectively; P=0.973]. Both parameters had similar sensitivities (75% vs. 74%, respectively; P=0.852) at a fixed specificity of 95%. The best sector for diagnosing glaucoma for both parameters was the temporal inferior sector, which showed an area under the ROC curve of 0.93 (0.87-0.96) for RNFLT and 0.91 (0.86-0.95) for MRW (P=0.320). The temporal inferior sector showed similar sensitivities for RNFLT and MRW measurements (83% vs. 77%, respectively) at a fixed specificity of 95% (P=0.230). Conclusions:MRW and RNFLT measurements showed comparable diagnostic performance in discriminating early to moderate glaucoma from healthy eyes in a Brazilian multiracial population.

Automated summary

A study conducted in a Brazilian multiracial population found that both minimum rim width (MRW) and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) measurements have comparable diagnostic performance in distinguishing early to moderate glaucoma from healthy eyes.