# Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study (DIGS):  Glaucoma and High Myopia

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2022 · $686,458

## Abstract

Project Summary
The objective of this study, “Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study (DIGS): Glaucoma and High Myopia”,
is to overcome barriers to the detection of open angle glaucoma (OAG) in individuals with high myopia
(mypOAG). In 2010, there was an estimated 1.4 billion people worldwide with myopia and the prevalence is
rapidly rising to an estimated 4.75 billion by 2050. Moreover, persons with high myopia are 2.5 times more
likely to have OAG than those without high myopia. It is unclear why myopia increases the risk of OAG, but it is
likely related at least in part to biomechanical factors; longer axial lengths in myopic eyes may result in
deformation of the lamina cribrosa, temporal displacement of Bruch's membrane, parapapillary changes and
vascular factors; these all lead to increased susceptibility of the optic nerve to OAG damage. Given the higher
prevalence of tilted discs and peripapillary atrophy in myopic eyes, the structural and functional tests that
usually guide treatment decisions are of diminished value. This proposal will provide essential follow-up to
establish best practices for patient-centered detection of OAG progression in the challenging high myopia
population. Specifically, this proposal will 1) identify optic nerve head (ONH) 3D morphologic parameters from
optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans (segmented and unsegmented) to differentiate between myopia
eyes with and without progressive OAG; 2) optimize change detection using novel OCT features (e.g. texture
and microvasculature) from wide field of view (WFOV) maps merged from individual ONH and macula scans;
and 3) develop novel longitudinal and multimodal deep learning (DL) models to predict OAG progression. Most
importantly, we will improve our understanding of the complex temporal relationship between structural,
functional and microvascular age- and OAG related changes in a diverse cohort across the range of myopia.
Specifically, in Specific Aim 1 (To improve our understanding of the complex relationship between ONH
morphology and structural, functional, and microvascular change in the aging and OAG eye), we address
several hypotheses related to the characterization of myopic ONH morphology in healthy eyes with and without
high myopia. We hypothesize that ONH morphology is predictive of age – and OAG related structural,
functional and microvascular changes and that it is predictive of fast progression. In Specific Aim 2 (To improve
detection of OAG progression in myopic eyes using WFOV maps, unsegmented 3D volumes, ONH
morphology), we address several hypotheses designed to detect and predict OAG progression using novel DL
approaches. In Specific Aim 3, we will establish a cloud-based pipeline for data curation and computation that
will facilitate secure DL model development and extensive data sharing with the vision research community.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10453376
- **Project number:** 2R01EY027510-06
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** LINDA M ZANGWILL
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $686,458
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2017-03-01 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10453376

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10453376, Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study (DIGS):  Glaucoma and High Myopia (2R01EY027510-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10453376. Licensed CC0.

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