Clinical Study
Eye (2006) 20, 574–578. doi:10.1038/sj.eye.6701929; published online 27 May 2005
A comparison of clinical performance between disposable and Goldmann tonometers
This paper was presented orally in an abridged form at the European Glaucoma Society Congress, Florence, 01 June 2004.
Competing interests: None. The Authors have no financial or other interests in any of the products mentioned.
A P Maino1, H J Uddin1 and A B Tullo1
1Royal Eye Hospital, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9WH, UK
Correspondence: AP Maino, Royal Eye Hospital, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9WH, UK. Tel: +44 161 276 5522; Fax +44 161 272 6618; E-mail: a.maino@doctors.net.uk
Received 9 November 2004; Revised 4 April 2005; Accepted 4 April 2005; Published online 27 May 2005.
Abstract
Purpose
Applanation tonometry as performed in routine clinical practice is a significant potential vehicle for cross-infection particularly in an emergency eye care setting. The aim of this study is to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of three single-use devices (Tonoshield, Tonosafe, Tonojet) as an alternative to standard Goldmann prisms in an emergency eye department.
Methods
All patients attending the eye casualty at the Manchester Royal Eye Hospital for a period of 4 months who required intraocular pressure measurement were eligible for this prospective study. Exclusion criteria were: age below 18 years, corneal anomalies that might affect measurement, and refusal to participate. After taking informed consent, the patient was examined by one experienced nurse practitioner, who measured the intraocular pressure three times. In the first part of the study, we compared the standard Goldmann prism vsTonoshield and Tonosafe prisms, while for the second part of the study we used standard Goldmann, Tonosafe, and Tonojet prisms. Agreement and repeatability tests were carried out on separate samples.
Results
Tonosafe and Tonojet correlated well with standard Goldmann tonometry (P<0.001), while the measurements obtained with Tonoshield were higher, especially for raised intraocular pressure measurements. Tonojet and Tonosafe measurements were more reproducible than Tonoshield measurements.
Conclusions
This study shows that Tonosafe and Tonojet are accurate and reliable alternatives to standard Goldmann tonometry.
Keywords:
disposable prisms, intraocular pressure, cross-infection
