The clinical course in primary angle-closure glaucoma: a reassessment.

Using ultrasonography, the authors made biometric measurements in 92 eyes of 47 patients with primary angle-closure glaucoma (ACG) and calculated the lens thickness/axial length factor (LAF) for each patient. Graphical and statistical analysis suggest the presence of three distinct clinical groups of patients with primary ACG. ACG shows a dynamic clinical picture; it starts in an eye which is initially uncompromised (group A) and progresses to one of two identifiable advanced stages (groups B and C). Accurate diagnosis by following LAF values in the earliest stage of the disease could prevent its development into the later stages.