Diurnal variations in intraocular pressure and central corneal thickness and the correlation between these factors in dogs.

Objective: To study the diurnal variation in intraocular pressure (IOP) and central corneal thickness (CCT) in healthy Beagles by rebound tonometry and ultrasonic pachymetry, respectively, in addition to determining whether a correlation exists between these two variables.

Animals Studied: Twenty eyes from 10 healthy Beagle dogs were included in the study.

Procedures: The IOP and CCT were measured by rebound tonometry and ultrasonic pachymetry, respectively, at 2-h intervals over an 8-hour period between 10:00 and 18:00.

Results: The mean values (± SD) of IOP obtained were 11.45 ± 2.96 at 10:00, 10.00 ± 1.89 at 12:00, 8.25 ± 1.62 at 14:00, 7.05 ± 1.05 at 16:00, and 6.55 ± 1.36 at 18:00. The mean values (± SD) of CCT obtained were 554.95 ± 72.41 at 10:00, 549.20 ± 69.10 at 12:00, 566.15 ± 80.56 at 14:00, 545.45 ± 70.19 at 16:00, and 538.30 ± 73.33 at 18:00. The IOP and CCT of dogs were found to decrease progressively from the first to the last measurement. There were statistically significant differences between the IOP (P = 0.000) and CCT values (P = 0.032) measured at different times of the day. There was no effect or interaction between gender and eye with the dependent variables. The IOP and CCT were found to be positively correlated (r = 0.213, P = 0.034). The regression equation demonstrated that for every 100 μm increase in CCT, there was an elevation in IOP by 0.8 mmHg.

Conclusions: The CCT and IOP values were lower in the afternoon/evening than in the morning, and these were positively correlated. Both findings are important for the diagnostic interpretation of IOP values in dogs.