Effects of pupillary dilation on automated perimetry in glaucoma patients receiving pilocarpine

• Published in: Ophthalmology (Rochester, Minn.) Vol. 99; no. 3; p. 418
• Main Authors: Rebolleda, G, Muñoz, F J, Fernández Victorio, J M, Pellicer, T, del Castillo, J M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.03.1992
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Female; Glaucoma, Open-Angle - drug therapy; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Phenylephrine - administration & dosage; Pilocarpine - therapeutic use; Pupil - drug effects; Sensory Thresholds; Visual Field Tests; Visual Fields
• ISSN: 0161-6420
• DOI: 10.1016/S0161-6420(92)31958-X

The authors studied 18 glaucoma patients receiving pilocarpine 2% therapy with automated static threshold perimetry using the Humphrey Field Analyzer 30-2 and STATPAC programs before and after instillation of 10% phenylephrine. The mean defect improved by an average of 3.14 decibels (dB) (standard deviation, 1.89 dB0 after administration of phenylephrine (P less than 0.001). The pattern standard deviation and the corrected pattern standard deviation also improved with dilation by 1.42 dB (P less than 0.01) and 1.73 dB (P less than 0.05), respectively, after dilation with phenylephrine. Comparisons of the unweighted means of threshold values in three zones of increasing eccentricity showed that the outer zone of the visual field had the greatest improvement after dilation. These findings indicate that pupillary dilation in glaucoma patients receiving pilocarpine therapy produces a nonuniform increase in threshold sensitivities and support the importance of consistent pupillary diameters on serial automated visual field examinations.