Impact of correlation of angle α with ocular biometry variables

PURPOSE To analyze the association between angle α and ocular biometry in the general population at a third-level ophthalmology hospital. SETTING Anterior Segment Surgery Department, Asociacion para Evitar la Ceguera en Mexico I.A.P., Mexico City, Mexico. DESIGN Prospective, cross-sectional study. METHODS Healthy subjects who attended the hospital for a comprehensive ophthalmological evaluation were examined, and general data were collected. A complete ophthalmological assessment and biomicroscopy evaluation were performed and biometry and clinical data were obtained, including visual acuity, axial length (AL), keratometry (K), white-to-white (WTW) measurement. An OPD-Scan III analyzer was used to assess both the angle α distance and biometry parameters. RESULTS 74 eyes from the same number of patients were included; 43 (58.10%) were women. A statistically significant inverse correlation was found between the angle α and the AL (r = -0.585; P < .0001) and between the WTW distance and the mean K (r = 0.557; P < .0001). A significant correlation was found between the mean K and the angle α (r = 0.271; P = .019). A significant inverse correlation was observed regarding the WTW distance and angle α (r = -0.359; P = .001). By contrast, a direct correlation was evidenced between the WTW and the AL (r = 0.385; P = .0007). CONCLUSIONS There was a significant inverse correlation between the AL and the angle α magnitude. Hyperopic patients demonstrated significantly higher angle α values when compared with those of myopic patients. In addition, hyperopic eyes with steeper mean K and lesser WTW distance were associated with an increased angle α.