摘要
Glaucoma refers to a group of diseases characterized by optic neuropathies that are commonly associated with degeneration of the retinal ganglion cells. Although intraocular pressure(IOP) is the only proven treatable factor, several studies indicate that other factors are involved in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Since normal tension glaucoma(NTG) is the most common glaucoma at least in Japan and South Korea, development of new therapeutic strategies for glaucoma, besides reduction of IOP, is crucial. The clinical characteristics and mechanisms underlying neuronal degeneration in Alzheimer's disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease, are similar to those of glaucoma. Impaired cerebral blood flow(CBF) is common to both these diseases;therefore, improving CBF may be considered a new treatment for glaucoma, especially for NTG. In addition, targeting the formation and aggravation pathway for amyloid-β and administration of apolipoprotein E-containing lipoproteins may be potential strategies for glaucoma treatment.
Glaucoma refers to a group of diseases characterized by optic neuropathies that are commonly associated with degeneration of the retinal ganglion cells. Although intraocular pressure （IOP） is the only proven treatable factor, several studies indicate that other factors are involved in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Since normal tension glaucoma （NTG） is the most common glaucoma at least in Japan and South Korea, development of new therapeutic strategies for glaucoma, besides reduction of IOP, is crucial. The clinical characteristics and mecha-nisms underlying neuronal degeneration in Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease, are similar to those of glaucoma. Impaired cerebral blood fow （CBF） is common to both these diseases; therefore, improving CBF may be considered a new treatment for glaucoma, especially for NTG. In addition, targeting the formation and aggravation pathway for amyloid-β and administration of apolipoprotein E-containing lipopro-teins may be potential strategies for glaucoma treat-ment.
