Words on Alzheimer and OAG, by Bo Sonnsjö

There are strong suspicions of connections between Open Angle Glaucoma, OAG and Alzheimer's disease. In a long follow-up where a large number of patients were examined by the same ophthalmologist (Sonnsjö) up to more than 30 years a number of those with OAG also developed Alzheimer's disease.

Studies from Lund by drs Krakau, Bengtsson, Holmin and Sonnsjö have showed, that lots of vascular findings, e g disk haemorr-hages, retinal vein occlusions in both branch and central veins, are detected from the early beginning to the endstage in OAG. - OAG is a vascular disease where small disk haemorrhages precede disk cupping and a rising IOP. Flourescein studies have shown leakage from eye blood vessels (Helsingfors University Ophthalmological dept.).

When examining OAG patients in Sunne it was possible to see an increasing aqueous flare as the disease process progressed. During long follow-up with fundus photographs, independently of which glaucoma diagnos was the endstage, the process progressed in the same way. Thousands of photographs have been analyzed and series from the same patients have been put together to short movies, where years of follow-up could present how the process looked like. With the help of a skilfull computer expert (Fredrik Stendahl) an animation movie have been produced. The last version of this movie can be seen on the internet. Some of the pictures showing some of the steps in the progress can be seen in this version of the Baltic Eye.

The Alzheimer Connection.

When analyzing the aqueous from operated cataract eyes it was possible to find abeta peptides, a typical finding among Alzheimer patients, if the patient also had glaucoma in the eye (Janusciauskiene and Krakau).

When vascular problems and abeta peptides can be detected in eyes whatever pressure can be measured and the destruction process often is progressing though maximal treatment of IOP, one important question must be asked: What are we treating? Symptoms or a disease process? If we are treating a vascular process causing an increasing IOP, something else than IOP reducing agents are also needed!

As abeta peptides are associated with Alzheimers disease and also can be detected in the aqueous it might be that a treatment against Alzheimers disease should have some impact also in cases with OAG. According to Karl Popper, leading scientific philosopher during the 20th century: When one theory is totally dominating there will not be a necessary debate, needed to solve problems. Progress will delay! It seemes that today IOP is totally dominating the thougths concerning OAG.

For a comprehensive description of the suggested OAG process, go here

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