AIM: To determine if aerobic exercise results in changes in choroidal thickness(ChT)responses in subjects with primary open-angle glaucoma(POAG).

METHODS: The study included 17 normal participants and 17 POAG patients(34 eyes)and subjected them to aerobic exercise in the form of jogging. During exercise, ChT, intraocular pressure(IOP), and mean arterial pressure(MAP)were recorded sequentially.

RESULTS: ChT and IOP significantly decreased in both groups after exercise, and the significant disparate response was found in the control and POAG group(P<0.05). MAP increased significantly in both groups after exercise, and the increase was more significant in the control group than that in the POAG group. The values for area under the curve(AUC)of the ChT variations and IOP were 0.75 and 0.281, respectively.

CONCLUSION: Activation of the sympathetic nerve induced by aerobic exercise might be the underlying mechanism for the decrease in ChT and IOP and the increase in MAP in both groups. The disparate responses to jogging observed in ChT, IOP, and MAP values between the groups might be because of the autonomic nervous system dysfunction in POAG patients.