To find difference in the rate of visual field defect progression among primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) patients grouped according to central corneal thickness (CCT).

The medical records of 87 eyes of 87 POAG patients who received were on regular treatment and had a minimum of 5 years of longitudinal Humphrey automated visual field follow-up were reviewed retrospectively. The patients were divided into 4 quartile groups by CCT, and the correlations among clinical factors, such as intraocular pressure (IOP), and change in mean deviation (MD), were analyzed.

The thinner cornea group showed a significant trend foward higher average, maximal, and yearly maximal IOP when the IOP was corrected by CCT (p<0.01), The rate of change in MD is significantly different; -0.33±0.6dB, -0.28±0.4dB, -0.09±0.2dB ,-0.02±0.2dB starting with the thinnest cornea group (p=0.036). Correlation analysis revealed a significant correlation between CCT and the rate of change in MD (r=0.351, p=0.001).

In POAG patients who were on regular treatment at a tertiary referral hospital, patients with thinner cornea showed faster visual field defect progression.