Table 3. Blood heavy metal concentrations in study subjects according to glaucoma diagnosis adjusted for confounding factors.
| Heavy metal | Normal | OAG with normal IOP | P† | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low-teen OAG | High-teen OAG | |||||
| Total | n = 4,989 | n = 209 | n = 136 | n = 73 | ||
| Lead (μg/dL) | 2.32 (2.28–2.35) | 2.28 (2.13–2.44) | 2.38 (2.18–2.60) | 2.13 (1.92–2.37) | 0.671 | |
| Mercury (μg/L) | 4.10 (4.00–4.20) | 3.79 (3.34–4.30) | 3.96 (3.33–4.71) | 3.54 (2.97–4.22) | 0.237 | |
| Cadmium (μg/dL) | 1.05 (1.03–1.07) | 1.15 (1.04–1.27) | 1.18 (1.06–1.30)* | 1.11 (0.92–1.33) | 0.074 | |
| Men | n = 2,440 | n = 133 | n = 79 | n = 54 | ||
| Lead (μg/dL) | 2.75 (2.70–2.80) | 2.69 (2.52–2.87) | 2.78 (2.60–2.97) | 2.57 (2.28–2.91) | 0.501 | |
| Mercury (μg/L) | 4.99 (4.83–5.14) | 5.03 (4.47–5.66) | 5.41 (4.52–6.47) | 4.58 (3.90–5.39) | 0.891 | |
| Cadmium (μg/dL) | 0.94 (0.92–0.97) | 1.10 (0.97–1.25)* | 1.12 (0.98–1.28)* | 1.07 (0.87–1.33) | 0.014* | |
| Women | n = 2,549 | n = 76 | n = 57 | n = 19 | ||
| Lead (μg/dL) | 1.97 (1.93–2.00) | 1.96 (1.71–2.25) | 2.10 (1.75–2.51) | 1.72 (1.43–2.06) | 0.940 | |
| Mercury (μg/L) | 3.39 (3.29–3.51) | 2.75 (2.16–3.48) | 2.81 (2.07–3.83) | 2.58 (1.80–3.73) | 0.078 | |
| Cadmium (μg/dL) | 1.16 (1.13–1.19) | 1.17 (1.01–1.34) | 1.20 (1.04–1.38) | 1.10 (0.81–1.49) | 0.931 | |
IOP, intraocular pressure; OAG, open-angle glaucoma.
Expressed as geometric mean (95% CI).
*P<0.05 compared to normal control group.
†P value between normal and OAG with normal IOP group.
Adjusted for age group, sex, region of residence, occupation, education level, smoking status, hypertension, family history of glaucoma, and intraocular pressure.