0
Correspondence |

Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study Results Could Be Misconstrued

Lawrence E. Weene, MD
[+] Author Affiliations

Copyright 2003 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved. Applicable FARS/DFARS Restrictions Apply to Government Use.

More Author Information
Arch Ophthalmol. 2003;121(7):1070-1070. doi:10.1001/archopht.121.7.1070-a
Text Size: A A A
Published online

The subtitle of the recent study by Kass et al1 is too sensational for the modest results. Even if an ophthalmologist treated all patients with the pressure elevations they describe, he or she could prevent only 1 case of glaucoma per 100 patients treated each year (9.5% in observation eyes − 4.4% in treated eyes over 5 years). This preventable case of glaucoma would have early disc changes and no field loss or early field loss and would, in all probability, be responsive to ocular hypotensive medication.

I am concerned that the media or even the drug companies could report this medical news to the public in the briefest and simplest way possible, by referring to the subtitle while ignoring the qualification of the companion article.2 The public might get the impression that this was a matter of preventable blindness instead of early glaucoma. It would be unfortunate if consumer demand became a substitute for good medical judgment.

REFERENCES

Kass  MA, Heuer  DK, Higginbotham  EJ.  et al.  The Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study: a randomized trial determines that topical ocular hypotensive medication delays or prevents the onset of primary open-angle glaucoma. Arch Ophthalmol. 2002;120701- 713
PubMed
Gordon  MO, Beiser  JA, Brandt  JD.  et al.  The Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study: baseline factors that predict the onset of primary open-angle glaucoma. Arch Ophthalmol. 2002;120714- 720
PubMed

First Page Preview

First page PDF preview

Figures

Tables

Interactive Graphics

Video

Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

Kass  MA, Heuer  DK, Higginbotham  EJ.  et al.  The Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study: a randomized trial determines that topical ocular hypotensive medication delays or prevents the onset of primary open-angle glaucoma. Arch Ophthalmol. 2002;120701- 713
PubMed
Gordon  MO, Beiser  JA, Brandt  JD.  et al.  The Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study: baseline factors that predict the onset of primary open-angle glaucoma. Arch Ophthalmol. 2002;120714- 720
PubMed

Correspondence

CME Course for:


You need to register in order to view this quiz.


To understand the clinical management of acute heart failure syndromes.
Accreditation Information The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
The AMA designates this journal-based CME activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM per course. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Physicians who complete the CME course and score at least 80% correct on the quiz are eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM.
Note: You must get at least of the answers correct to pass this quiz.
Note: You must get at least of the answers correct to pass this quiz.
You have not filled in all the answers to complete this quiz
The following questions were not answered:
Sorry, you have unsuccessfully completed this CME quiz with a score of
The following questions were not answered correctly:
For CME Course: A Proposed Model for Initial Assessment and Management of Acute Heart Failure Syndromes
Indicate what changes(s) you will implement in your practice, if any, based on this CME course.
To view and print your certificate and access a summary of your CME courses go to My CME.
NOTE:
Citing articles are presented as examples only. In non-demo SCM6 implementation, integration with CrossRef’s “Cited By” API will populate this tab (http://www.crossref.org/citedby.html).
Submit a Response

Some tools below are only available to our subscribers or users with an online account.

Web of Science® Times Cited: 1

Related Content

Customize your page view by dragging & repositioning the boxes below.

Articles Related By Topic
Related Topics
PubMed Articles