TY - JOUR T1 - Systemic hypertension and glaucoma: mechanisms in common and co-occurrence JF - British Journal of Ophthalmology JO - Br J Ophthalmol SP - 960 LP - 963 DO - 10.1136/bjo.2004.053397 VL - 89 IS - 8 AU - M J S Langman AU - R J Lancashire AU - K K Cheng AU - P M Stewart Y1 - 2005/08/01 UR - http://bjo.bmj.com/content/89/8/960.abstract N2 - Aims: To determine whether systemic hypertension and glaucoma might coexist more often than expected, with possible implications for treatment. Methods: Case-control study using general practitioner database of patients with glaucoma matched with controls for age and sex. Results: Hypertension was significantly more common in the 27 080 patients with glaucoma (odds ratio 1.29, 95% confidence intervals 1.23 to 1.36, p<0.001) than in controls. Treatment by oral β blockade appeared to protect from risk (odds ratio 0.77, 95% CI 0.73 to 0.83, p<0.0001), but oral calcium channel antagonists or angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors did not (odds ratios 1.34, 1.24 to 1.44 and 1.16 1.09–1.24, respectively, p<0.0001 in each case). Oral corticosteroid treatment was associated with enhanced risk (odds ratio 1.78, 1.61 to 1.96). Conclusion: Common pathogenetic mechanisms in ciliary and renal tubular epithelia may explain coincidence of glaucoma and systemic hypertension. The choice of cardiovascular treatment, could substantially influence glaucoma incidence, with β blockade protecting and ACE inhibitors or calcium channel blockers not affecting underlying risk. ER -