Relevance of the site of injury of glaucoma to neuroprotective strategies.

Glaucomatous optic neuropathy is a chronic progressive disease associated with characteristic changes in the morphology of the optic disk, pattern of visual field, and death of retinal ganglion cells. Neuroprotection is a potential treatment for glaucomatous optic neuropathy which acts independently of lowering intraocular pressure. Neuroprotective strategies differ in their site of action, and it is important to correlate this with the location at which the glaucomatous injury occurs. This article describes a hypothetical scheme for determining the site of progression of glaucomatous optic neuropathy and discusses the implications of this model for evaluating studies of neuroprotection.