Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Nov 10, 2024 3 days, 5 hours, 29 minutes ago
Medical News: A recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Valencia, Spain, explored how routine blood draws impact intraocular pressure (IOP) in older adults. With aging, eye pressure can fluctuate, potentially affecting vision health. Although blood tests are common in clinical settings, they can trigger subtle physiological changes. This
Medical News report reveals that understanding these changes is crucial, especially for eye health in people over 60. For patients with eye conditions like glaucoma, fluctuations in eye pressure can sometimes worsen symptoms, highlighting the importance of managing such stressors.
Blood Draws Affect the Eye Pressure of Older Adults
Study Design and Methodology
The researchers included 53 participants, aged 60 and above, from the University of Valencia’s nursing department. Participants were asked to fast for at least eight hours before arriving at the lab, where the study began with an eye pressure measurement taken with a rebound tonometer. After collecting 20 mL of blood, the researchers repeated the eye pressure tests five minutes later.
To ensure a representative analysis, researchers divided participants into subgroups based on age, sex, and baseline IOP levels. This approach allowed them to assess differences in eye pressure responses depending on individual characteristics and baseline health factors.
Key Findings: Blood Draws, Age, and Eye Pressure Variability
Significant findings emerged, showing that blood draws can cause a small, non-clinical reduction in eye pressure, mainly in the right eye. These changes were more prominent among males and those over 68. Additionally, people with higher baseline IOP showed more significant decreases, while those with initially low IOP had smaller, non-significant shifts in the left eye.
The most noteworthy discovery was how baseline IOP influenced individual responses. Participants with higher initial IOP experienced noticeable reductions, while those with lower IOP did not show substantial variations. This pattern underscores the importance of a person’s starting IOP level in determining their reaction to minor stressors like blood draws. These findings suggest that those with elevated IOP may experience greater relief in pressure post-blood draw, though the changes were small enough to avoid any clinical concerns.
Does Gender Impact Eye Pressure Changes?
Another interesting aspect of the study was examining how males and females responded differently. While men experienced slightly larger reductions in right-eye IOP, these changes were not clinically significant. Women, on the other hand, displayed more stable IOP levels post-draw, suggesting that hormonal or genetic differences may influence the physiological response to stressors. This finding could support a trend toward less variability in eye pressure among females.
The Role of Age in Eye Pressure Regulation
The study results indicate that aging may contribute to variations i
n eye pressure responses. Older participants showed slightly larger decreases, particularly in the right eye. This may result from age-related changes in vascular health, making older adults more sensitive to even minor physiological shifts, such as those caused by blood draws. By contrast, younger participants seemed to maintain more stable eye pressure readings. These results suggest a greater need to monitor IOP in older adults during medical procedures that can temporarily alter systemic conditions.
Baseline Eye Pressure as a Key Indicator
The study found that individuals with higher baseline IOP levels exhibited more significant drops in eye pressure following blood draws than those with lower initial readings. This trend could mean that people with elevated IOP may have eye pressure that is more responsive to systemic changes. Consequently, these individuals might benefit from personalized monitoring when undergoing procedures that alter blood volume or circulation, particularly those at risk for conditions such as glaucoma.
Study Conclusions: Implications for Patient Care and Further Research
The study offers insights into the short-term, small impact that routine blood draws can have on older adults’ eye pressure, primarily if baseline IOP is elevated. It also highlights the importance of understanding patient-specific factors, such as age, sex, and initial IOP, which play a role in IOP stability after routine blood draws. Although the IOP changes observed were clinically negligible, the study emphasizes that routine clinical assessments of IOP can benefit from a more personalized approach, particularly for older adults or those with higher IOP levels.
For patients concerned with maintaining stable eye pressure, the findings reaffirm that minor blood draws are generally safe, even for older individuals. Nevertheless, the results support a patient-centric approach in ophthalmology and routine health checks, underscoring the benefits of personalized assessments based on an individual’s unique physiological baseline. Further research could expand on these findings by investigating how more significant stressors or larger blood volumes affect IOP over extended periods.
The study findings were published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Clinical Medicine.
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/13/21/6554
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