The Effect Of Neck Position On Intraocular Presurre In Healthy Adults : A Cross – Sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: Intraocular pressure (IOP) is an important parameter in eye health evaluation, particularly in the detection and management of glaucoma. Variations in body position, including neck position, are suspected to influence IOP values ​​and potentially cause bias in clinical measurements. This study aimed to assess differences in intraocular pressure in three neck positions: neutral (normal), flexion, and extension.

Methods: This study used a cross-sectional study design involving 39 healthy young subjects with a mean age of 23.53 ± 2.17 years and a mean spherical equivalent (SER) of 0.91 ± 1.03 diopters. IOP measurements were performed three times in each eye using the TonoPen AVIA (Reichert Inc., Depew, New York, USA) in the normal neck position, after 5 minutes of neck flexion, and after 5 minutes of neck extension.

Results: showed that the average IOP in the normal neck position was 13.66 ± 1.88 mmHg, increasing to 17.24 ± 1.94 mmHg in the flexed position, and 14.66 ± 2.28 mmHg in the extended position. Repeated-measures ANOVA analysis showed a significant difference between the three positions (F (1.81; 67.01) = 94.46; p < 0.01). Bonferroni's further test confirmed that the IOP in the flexed position was significantly higher than in the normal and extended positions.

Conclusion: this study shows that neck position significantly influences intraocular pressure, with the lowest value in the neutral position. Therefore, in clinical practice, neck position should be standardized when measuring IOP to avoid misinterpretation of results.