2020–2021 BCSC Basic and Clinical Science Course™
10 Glaucoma
Chapter 2: Intraocular Pressure and Aqueous Humor Dynamics
This chapter includes a related video. A link to the video is provided within the text; a page containing all videos in Section 10 is available at www.aao.org/bcscvideo_section10.
Highlights
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An understanding of aqueous humor dynamics is essential for the evaluation and management of glaucoma.
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Aqueous humor is produced in the ciliary processes at 2–3 μL/min diurnally (and approximately 50% less nocturnally) and drains through the trabecular and uveoscleral pathways.
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The parameters that contribute to intraocular pressure (IOP) are modeled by the modified Goldmann equation; they include outflow facility, aqueous humor production rate, episcleral venous pressure, and uveoscleral outflow rate.
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IOP is found in the population in a skewed distribution, and glaucoma can occur at any pressure level.
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Various tonometry methods can be used to estimate IOP, but all of the devices have inherent sources of measurement error.
Excerpted from BCSC 2020-2021 series: Section 10 - Glaucoma. For more information and to purchase the entire series, please visit https://www.aao.org/bcsc.