# Long-Term Intraocular Pressure Fluctuation and Epiretinal Membrane in Patients with Glaucoma or Glaucoma Suspect

## TL;DR

This study finds that long-term eye pressure changes are linked to a specific eye condition in glaucoma patients.

## Contribution

The study identifies a novel association between IOP fluctuation and idiopathic ERM in glaucoma patients.

## Key findings

- Patients with ERM had higher IOP fluctuation and worse visual field defects.
- ERM stage correlated with the severity of visual field defects.
- ERM could serve as a biomarker for IOP fluctuation in glaucoma clinics.

## Abstract

Background: A relationship between glaucoma and epiretinal membrane (ERM) has been suggested previously. We investigated the association between intraocular pressure (IOP) fluctuation and idiopathic ERM in patients with glaucoma or glaucoma suspect. Methods: Among patients with glaucoma or glaucoma suspect, data from 43 patients with ERM and 41 patients without ERM were reviewed and analyzed in this retrospective study. The long-term fluctuation of IOP was defined based on the standard deviation of IOP across all visits. Results: Patients with ERM were older and had a higher SD of IOP and a higher proportion of having a history of cataract surgery and greater macular thickness (p = 0.018, 0.049, 0.013, and <0.001, respectively). In multiple logistic regression analysis, the high-IOP-fluctuation group was associated with the presence of ERM (p = 0.047). Among patients with ERM, eyes with stage-3 or -4 ERM had worse visual field defects based on mean deviation than those with stage-1 or -2 ERM (p = 0.025). Conclusions: Long-term IOP fluctuation was associated with idiopathic ERM in patients with glaucoma or glaucoma suspect. Idiopathic ERM could serve as a biomarker for long-term IOP fluctuation in glaucoma patients, particularly in clinics where measuring long-term IOP fluctuation during the first visit is not feasible due to its time-consuming nature.