Articles about Eye Health and Disease 2003
 

Tight Neckties May Raise Glaucoma Risk

(From Ritch R MD, et al., Br J Ophthalmol 2003;87:946-948.)

By slowing the drainage of intraocular fluid into the venous system, wearing a tight necktie could increase the risk of glaucoma, according to a report published in the August 2003 issue of the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

The new findings indicate that wearing a tight necktie produces a significant rise in intraocular pressure in patients with and without glaucoma. Although it could take several years of tie wearing to actually cause glaucoma, if a tie is worn during eye examination, the elevated pressures could lead to an incorrect diagnosis of glaucoma.

"You don't want to treat people for a disease you gave them rather than one they actually have," said senior author Dr. Robert Ritch, from The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary." There are a lot of factors known to affect tonometry readings and tight tie wearing appears to be another one," he added.

"Persistently elevated intraocular pressures is a risk factor for glaucoma," Dr. Ritch noted. So, in essence, "you could be giving yourself glaucoma by wearing a tight necktie" for many years, he added.

In their study, Dr. Ritch's team measured the intraocular pressures of 40 eyes in 20 normal subjects and 20 patients with open angle glaucoma. Pressures were measured with the shirt collar open, then with a tie placed tightly, and lastly after the tie had been loosened.

In both groups, wearing a tight tie produced a significant rise in intraocular pressures. Loosening the tie brought the pressures back down to within baseline values.

"I think our findings are something that glaucoma patients as well as ophthalmologists should be aware of," Dr. Ritch said.

"You can still wear a neck tie, just don't wear it tight," he advised.

"It's hard to know how much tight neckties may contribute to an over diagnosis of glaucoma -- that's really an epidemiologic question," Dr. Ritch noted. "To my knowledge, no one has ever done that type of study, but maybe they will now."

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