intraocular pressure research

Hi Dave - What is required to participate in the self-tonometry research group? I have heard about the special tonometer pricing available through FitEyes. What do I have to do to qualify for those discounts? Thank you.

Tom

I just installed the FitEyes Insight software yesterday. I have a few questions so far.

ARVO 2010
Abstract Title: Effect of Sleeping Posture on Intraocular Pressure

Author Block: A.H. Lai, M.H.Y. Wong, P.T.K. Chew, M. Singh.
Ophthalmology, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore.

Keywords: intraocular pressure

Abstract

Purpose: To determine if head postures which may be
adopted during sleep has an effect on intraocular pressure (IOP).

Methods: The design of this study is of a prospective observational case
series. Adult subjects were recruited from general ophthalmology out-patient
clinic visits for non-glaucoma conditions. Exclusion criteria for the study

Chris said:

i know for a fact that drinking a pitcher of water at one sitting causes a HUGE spike in my IOP.
 
i used to drink like 1 gallon of water in a really short time ... i realized it was causing huge pressure spikes ...
 
i've since modified that behavior ...:)

David said:

Recently here on FitEyes, readers have asked about the relationship between intraocular pressure about meditation. That prompted me to write this post about some of the broader spiritual aspects of what I do as well as how I view intraocular pressure in my own life and in my work as a Serene Impulse teacher.

Meditation and spirituality are often perceived as soft, delicate, wishy-washy, "New Agie", etc. My own approach is hard-core and scientific. It is also great fun. The path is filled with bliss and love -- and lots of IOP data!

I just wish I could say one way or the other whether these practices affect my intraocular pressure.

And I also wish we knew if your theory is correct: that as a person continues to do TaiChi and/or EFT, their intraocular pressure settles down.

Mary

 Here is what i have noticed after several months of recording my eye pressures. 

• I can sometime detect an immediate correlation between a 'negative' or stressful thought (or anxiety) and an increase in my eye pressure.
• read more...

From MDLinx Ophthal Newsletter. See number 27 on the list.

Top-Read Clinical Articles of 2009 in Ophthal/Glaucoma

Most read articles from 64 contributor journals (see the list)

The following post is adapted from "A Deluge of Data Shapes a New Era in Computing" By JOHN MARKOFF, published: December 14, 2009 in The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/15/science/15books.html?_r=1&pagewanted=p...

Top computer scientists say we have entered the age of data-intensive scientific discovery. Dr. Gray, who was a database software pioneer and a Microsoft researcher,  called the shift a “fourth paradigm.” The first three paradigms were experimental, theoretical and, more recently, computational science.

I am passing this along. If any of you with tonometers would like to do the same thing this individual is doing, I would encourage you to participate. Any comments are welcome.

Well, I’ve had another interesting observation.

For the past several years, I’ve been taking my prostaglandin analogue, Travatan Z, at night right before going to bed as directed by my ophthalmologist.  However, having been startled by the high levels of my nocturnal IOP, I started researching ways to lower it.  

There are two Excel spreadsheets available:

• simple version
• standard version

Both have the same column layout for the important data elements, and this is really the only important feature of any spreadsheet to me. The SimpleSample (Measurements tab) shows the key aspects.

Avisar R, Avisar E, Weinberger D: Effect of coffee consumption on IOP. Ann Pharmacother 2002;36:992-995.

BACKGROUND: Many ophthalmologists instruct patients with glaucoma to avoid coffee, although data supporting this practice are insufficient.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the effect of drinking coffee on IOP.

This year the World Glaucoma Congress (WGC) is taking place in the United States (Boston, MA) from July 8th to 11th. Dr. Ritch will be there, as will Marcel and I.

I believe all of you know, or know of, Dr. Ritch. Marcel is a key founder of the International Society for Self-Tonometry (ISST), of which Dr. Ritch is Honorary Chairman. Marcel is a driving force behind getting me and several other self-tonometrists together in Boston.

If you have been reading FitEyes.com, you already know we have documented, through thousands of intraocular pressure measurements in real life situations, that stress can raise eye pressure in glaucoma patients. I just came across this abstract of an older study done in Japan that is of interest in this regard.

Purpose. To test whether encagement and volume load as stressors influence the intraocular pressure in rabbits.

Method. Rabbits were encaged for an hour in a horizontally-plastic tube with an internal diameter of 13.2cm and a length of 33.2cm. After the encagement, rabbits received a rapid intraveonus drip infusion of 5% glucose solution, 20 ml per kilogram of body weight, for 5-6 minutes. All experiments were performed at the same time of day.

The World Glaucoma Congress 2009 is taking place in Boston, Massachusetts, USA July 8-11, 2009.

Research has shown that stress can physically reshape the brain, causing both extensive and long-lasting damage to the human brain. Brain cells can shrink and the connections between neurons can decrease. In short, stress causes big changes to the human nervous system. In 2008, new knowledge regarding the effects of short-term stress were measured at University of California, Irvine, and breakthrough research on the effects of long-term, chronic stress were conducted at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.

 I stopped doing all inverted yoga postures a couple years ago. The plow (plough, halasana) posture used to be one of my favorites. When I first started self-tonometry some years ago I did the plow posture for just a few minutes, then sat up and took some intraocular pressure measurements.