Purpose: To investigate the risk factors for initial central scotoma (ICS) compared with initial peripheral scotoma (IPS) in normal-tension glaucoma (NTG).
Methods: Fifty-six NTG patients (56 eyes) with an ICS and 103 NTG patients (103 eyes) with an IPS were included. Retrospectively, the differences were assessed between the two groups for baseline characteristics, ocular factors, systemic factors, and lifestyle factors. Also, the mean deviation of visual field was compared between the two groups.
Results: Patients from both ICS and IPS groups were of similar age, gender, family history of glaucoma, and follow-up periods. Frequency of disc hemorrhage was significantly higher among patients with ICS than in patients with IPS. Moreover, systemic risk factors such as hypotension, migraine, Raynaud's phenomenon, and snoring were more prevalent in the ICS group than in the IPS group. There were no statistical differences in lifestyle risk factors such as smoking or body mass index. Pattern standard deviation was significantly greater in the ICS group than in the IPS group, but the mean deviation was similar between the two groups.
Conclusions: NTG Patients with ICS and IPS have different profiles of risk factors and clinical characteristics. This suggests that the pattern of initial visual field loss may be useful to identify patients at higher risk of central field loss.
Keywords: Low tension glaucoma; Risk factors; Scotoma; Visual fields.