Challenges of diagnosing glaucoma in myopic eyes: Characteristics and determinants of the anatomical structures relevant to glaucoma

Myopia is a common condition in the world and a major risk factor for glaucoma. Glaucoma is a condition in which the optic nerve gradually dies and the visual fields shrinks; irreversible blindness may result if treatment is not initiated on time. Diagnosing glaucoma in myopic people is difficult because myopic eyes often have anatomical features and visual field defects that are very similar to the changes you may observe in eyes with glaucoma. Therefore, a detailed understanding of the anatomical structures relevant to glaucoma is of great importance. This thesis is entitled "Challenges in diagnosing glaucoma in myopic eyes". The core of the research is the OCT technique (optical coherence tomography), a technique with which the anatomy of the structures in the eye can be studied in detail. Structures relevant to glaucoma include the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and the ganglion cell layer in the macula. The RNFL involves both the thickness profile around the optic nerve head (peripapillary RNFL, the optic nerve head is where the nerve fibers leave the eye and form the optic nerve) and the trajectories of the nerve fiber bundles over the retina. I found a number of characteristic differences between myopia and glaucoma that make it easier for the ophthalmologist to make a good distinction between these two eye diseases.