Depressed visual field and mood are associated with sleep disorder in glaucoma patients

The aim of the present study was to evaluate sleep and mood disorders and related ocular parameters in glaucoma patients. We focused on visual fields and the retinal nerve fibre layer, because decreased circadian photoreception by damaged intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells is suspected in glaucoma. A cross-sectional study was performed on 140 subjects: 69 with glaucoma and 71 normal controls. Individuals with cataract, dry eye, or retinal pathology were excluded from the study. Participants completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and underwent comprehensive ophthalmological examinations for glaucoma. Patients with advanced glaucoma had significantly worse PSQI scores than normal controls (P < 0.05). Stepwise multivariate linear regression analysis revealed PSQI was significantly correlated with the mean deviation in the worse eye, the number and frequency of medications, and anxiety and depression subscores of the HADS after adjustment for age and sex (P < 0.05). We did not find a significant correlation between PSQI scores and the thickness of retinal nerve fibre layer. In conclusion, the subjective sleep quality of glaucoma patients was correlated with visual field loss and mood status.