The study published online in JAMA Ophthalmology retrospectively reviewed claims data from 152,163 women 50 years or older who had been enrolled in a U.S. managed-care plan for at least four years. The women had made at least two visits to an eye care provider during the period 2001 through 2009. Outpatient pharmacy claims were used to identify use of PMH medications.
Dr. Paula Anne Newman-Casey, from University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues found that 1.9 per cent of enrollees developed POAG. Each additional month of use of PMH containing estrogen only was associated with a 0.4 per cent reduced risk for POAG (hazard ratio [HR], 0.996; P = 0.02), after adjustment for other confounding factors. The risk of POAG was not affected for each additional month of use of estrogen + progesterone (HR, 0.994; P = 0.08) or estrogen + androgen (HR, 0.999; P = 0.89).
The authors stated that, “…if prospective studies confirm the findings of this analysis, novel treatments for this sight-threatening condition may follow”.
