Twenty-four Hour Intraocular Pressure Patterns in Patients With Uncontrolled Thyroid Eye Disease

Patients with Thyroid Eye Disease (TED) often have enlarged extraocular muscles and higher orbital fat contents due to their disease process. The confined space of the orbit cannot hold the enlarged orbital contents creating a forward displacement and/or compression of the globe with a rise in intraocular pressure (IOP). Many of these patients undergo surgical decompression, a procedure that fractures orbital bones, in order to allow more space for the enlarged orbital contents to occupy. To date, there is no data that shows intraocular patterns over a 24-hour period in patients with mechanical compression on the globe as in TED. It is not know if the pattern of IOP is more consistent with normal IOP patterns, glaucomatous patterns, or perhaps completely different then either. The goal of this project is to investigate patterns of IOP in patients requiring orbital decompression because of orbital congestion. Changes in IOP during a 24-hour period will be studied with a contact-lens embedded sensor that provides continuous data. This device has previously been investigated and shown to be safe and well-tolerated. Monitoring the pattern in these patients will allow us to compare Thyroid TED patterns of IOP with those of normal and glaucomatous patients. Also, testing these patients before and after orbital decompression surgery will allow characterization of how intraocular pressure changes once the mechanical compression on the globe is relieved.