Postprandial Glucose as a Risk Factor for Elevated Intraocular Pressure

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between postprandial glucose and intraocular pressure in a relatively healthy population. We examined 1,439 adults getting a health check-up in a health promotion center at Tri-Service General Hospital (TSGH) in Taiwan between 2012 and 2013. All participants underwent examinations to measure metabolic variables and intraocular pressure. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to assess the relationship between postprandial glucose and intraocular pressure. The levels of postprandial glucose were divided into quartiles with subjects in the lowest quartile being regarded as the reference group to perform quartile-based analysis. Covariate adjustment was designed for three models for further analysis. Subjects with higher quartiles of postprandial glucose level had a higher systolic blood pressure, a greater waist circumference and an elevated fasting glucose level (all p < 0.001). The β coefficient with adjusted covariates showed a significant positive association between postprandial glucose and intraocular pressure. The trends of intraocular pressure across increasing quartiles of postprandial glucose were statistically significant (all p for trend < 0.001). Thus, higher levels of postprandial glucose positively correlated with elevated intraocular pressure.