Description & Process
Intraocular pressure (IOP) is an important prognostic factor for visual loss attributable to glaucoma and the only factor that can be altered by treatment.
Since the identification of intraocular pressure as a risk factor for glaucomatous damage, attempts have been made to measure IOP through the eyelid, obviating the need for topical anesthetic and the risk of eye-to-eye transfer of pathogenic organisms. The simplest way to accomplish this is with the fingers, but, perhaps, with very few exceptions, digital (meaning with fingers) impressions are at best qualitative and at worst not correlative with real IOP. However, a reasonable qualitative (or semi-quantitative) assessment can be made in situations where other, more accurate, devices are not practical, such as in young children, demented patients and severely developmentally-challenged patients.