Intraocular Pressures In A Honduran Population.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the ocular health of the Honduran population, with an emphasis in the areas of intraocular pressure and the incidence of glaucoma. Through examination, observation, research, and comparison to the US population, numerous conclusions were obtained. The objective of this study was to compare lOP's in the Honduran population to those of similar age groups in the American population. I hypothesized that lOP's in the Honduran population would be higher than those in the American population, due in part to the limited access to health care. I also expected to see a higher incidence of probable glaucoma patients than would be present on a routine screening in the American population. It was my intent to investigate reasons for any differences in lOP that were observed. Our group also wanted to establish this study as guidelines for future VOSH trips, so as to continually improve the quality of care to the Honduran population. Although the main purpose of this study was to investigate the lOP's in the Honduran population, there were individuals who were found to have glaucoma. In analyzing the data, the patients seen were classified into the following categories: good ocular health , glaucoma suspects, or those with probable glaucoma, who would benefit from treatment. These categories were based on lOP, VAs, optic nerve appearance, and confrontation visual fields. With limited amounts of treatment medications additional factors were considered in deciding which patients to treat. Some of these factors were: ocular pathologies, monocularity, age of the patient, and general patient health factors.