Glaucoma (POAG) risk is 2.1X higher if low vitamin D - Aug 2015

Serum vitamin D status is associated with the presence but not the severity of primary open angle glaucoma

Maturitas, August 2015 Volume 81, Issue 4, Pages 470–474
Aurélien Goncalves, Dan Milea, Philippe Gohier, Ghislaine Jallet, Stéphanie Leruez, Mani Baskaran, Tin Aung, Cédric Annweiler
Highlights
•Vitamin D is involved in visual health and function.
•Cases with glaucoma had lower mean serum 25OHD concentration than controls.
•There was no 25OHD difference between moderate and severe glaucoma.
•These findings provide a scientific base for vitamin D replacement trials.

Objectives: Vitamin D is involved in visual health and function. Our objective was to determine whether age-related vitamin D insufficiency was associated with the presence and the severity of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) in a case-control study of older adults.

Study design: Case-control study.

Main outcome measures. One hundred fifty cases diagnosed with moderate-to-severe POAG (mean, 75.1 ± 8.5 years; 42.0% female) and 164 healthy controls (mean, 73.0 ± 7.9 years; 59.8% female) were included. POAG diagnosis was based on classical diagnostic criteria of optic nerve cupping and/or RNFL thinning, measured with optical coherence tomography. Severe POAG was defined as Humphrey visual field mean deviation (MD) worse than −12 dB. Vitamin D insufficiency was defined as serum 25OHD ≤ 75 nmol/L. Age, gender, mean arterial pressure, vitamin D supplementation, visual acuity, and intraocular pressure were used as potential confounders.

Results: POAG cases had lower mean serum 25OHD concentration than controls (42.9 ± 25.7 nmol/L versus 49.4 ± 29.5 nmol/L, P = 0.039) and a greater prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency (90.7% versus 82.3%, P = 0.032). Increased mean serum 25OHD concentrations were associated with lower POAG frequency, even after adjustment for potential confounders (OR = 0.89 per 10 nmol/L of 25OHD, P = 0.045). Similarly, vitamin D insufficiency was associated with POAG (OR = 2.09, P = 0.034). Among POAG cases, no 25OHD difference was observed between moderate and severe POAG cases (respectively, 39.2 ± 23.3 nmol/L versus 45.1 ± 26.7 nmol/L, P = 0.188); and no between-group difference regarding the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency (88.9% versus 94.0%, P = 0.313).

Conclusions: Decreased serum 25OHD concentration was associated with POAG. There was no 25OHD difference between moderate and severe POAG.

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Note: 90 % of glaucoma in US is open-angle glaucoma

See also Vitamin D Life

• All items in category Vision and Vitamin D 77 items
• Glaucoma risk increases 69 percent if very low vitamin D - Jan 2014
• Vitamin D is the best vitamin to fight glaucoma – May 2018