Purpose: To evaluate binocular and monocular reading ability in glaucoma patients with good visual acuity and to examine its relationship with central visual field sensitivity.
Methods: Glaucoma patients (35 individuals, mean±SD: 51.8±12.9 years) with a decimal visual acuity in each eye of ≥1.0, reading ability was tested both binocular and monocular using Japanese version of Minnesota Reading Acuity Chart (MNREAD-J). Reading ability parameters were calculated for maximum reading speed (MRS), critical print size (CPS), and reading acuity (RA). The results were compared with those of people with normal vision; differences in reading ability under varied testing conditions and correlations between visual field sensitivity and each parameter were examined.
Results: Under binocular reading conditions, MRS, CPS, and RA were decreased significantly in glaucoma patients compared with normal controls (p=0.00044, p=0.00004, p=0.00028, respectively). Under monocular reading conditions, glaucoma patient MRS and RA were decreased significantly in comparison with normal controls (p=0.00155, p=0.00142). In glaucoma patients undergoing binocular reading tests, MRS was greatest in the paracentral bottom right quadrant of the worse eye (r=0.41709, p=0.04447). The CPS decreased in proportion to the extent of the difference between both eyes in the mean deviation value and the visual field sensitivity of the paracentral bottom left (r=0.40693, p=0.02699 and r=0.41478, p=0.02384). RA improved in proportion to the extent of the difference between both eyes in the visual field sensitivity of the upper left (r=0.33557, p=0.04799).
Conclusion: In glaucoma patients, binocular reading is not necessarily useful in cases of visual field sensitivity differences.
Nippon Ganka Gakkai Zasshi (J Jpn Ophthalmol Soc) 117: 925-930, 2013.