The reliability and applicability of a macular thickness measurement in the diagnostic evaluation of primary open angle glaucoma

Introduction
The aim of the study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of retinal thickness measurements in the macular region and the applicability of this method in the diagnosis of primary open-angle glaucoma.

Material and methods
A group of 194 subjects (371 eyes) aged 30 to 65 years underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic examination including the macular thickness measurement using the rerinal thickness, analyzer. The following parameters were determined: foveolar average thickness foveal average thickness, perifoveal average thickness and posterior pole average thickness. The data was analyzed statistically in order to determine the sensitivity, specificity and the likelihood ratio for the measurement method.

Results
We found the following positive and negative likelihood ratio values for the respective interest areas: foveolar average thickness (2.374 and 0.456), foveal average thickness (2.501 and 0.482), perifoveal average thickness (6.161 and 0.099) and posterior pole average thickness (6.019 and 0.124).

Conclusions
For the perifoveal and posterior pole regions, the method of retinal thickness measurement showed a high sensitivity and specificity as well as a high positive likelihood ratio and a near-zero negative likelihood ratio. The retinal thickness measurements can therefore be successfully applied in the diagnosis of primary open-angle glaucoma.