Progressive thinning of visual cortex in primary open-angle glaucoma of varying severity

Longhua Yu; Liqi Xie; Chao Dai; Bing Xie; Minglong Liang; Lu Zhao; Xuntao Yin; Jian Wang

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0121960

Progressive thinning of visual cortex in primary open-angle glaucoma of varying severity

PLoS One. 2015 Mar 27;10(3):e0121960. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0121960. eCollection 2015.

Authors

Longhua Yu¹, Liqi Xie², Chao Dai³, Bing Xie⁴, Minglong Liang⁴, Lu Zhao⁵, Xuntao Yin⁶, Jian Wang⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Radiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China; Department of Radiology, 401st Hospital of the People's Liberation Army, Qingdao, Shandong, China.
² Department of Radiology, 401st Hospital of the People's Liberation Army, Qingdao, Shandong, China.
³ Ophthalmology research center, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
⁴ Department of Radiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.
⁵ McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
⁶ Department of Radiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China; McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate possible changes of cortical thickness in the visual cortex in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) of varying severity. Twenty normal controls (NC), 20 mild (MP) and 17 severe (SP) POAG patients were recruited and scanned using magnetic resonance imaging. Cortical thickness analyses with regions of interest (V1, V2, ventral V3, V4 and V5/MT+) were used to assess the cortical changes among the three groups. Furthermore, the associations of cortical thickness with retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and mean deviation of visual field were analyzed. Compared with the NC group, decreased cortical thickness was detected in the bilateral V5/MT+ areas in the MP group and the left V1, bilateral V2 and V5/MT+ areas in the SP group. Cortical thinning of the bilateral V2 areas was detected in the SP group compared with the MP group. In addition, cortical thinning of these visual areas was related to the ophthalmologic measurements. In conclusion, POAG patients exhibit cortical thinning in the bilateral V5/MT+ in the early stage of disease. The cortical degeneration in visual areas is discrepant with disease progressing and the dorsal pathway might be selectively damaged in POAG. Therefore, the cortical thinning of these visual areas may play a key role in the progression of POAG and can serve as a novel biomarker for accurately evaluating the severity of POAG.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Case-Control Studies
Female
Glaucoma, Open-Angle / pathology*
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / methods
Male
Middle Aged
Nerve Fibers / pathology*
Visual Cortex / pathology*
Visual Fields
Young Adult

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (no. 30870697) and the Natural Science Foundation of China for Young Scholars (No. 81301205). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.