The Study
Analysis of aerobic exercise influence on intraocular pressure and ocular perfusion pressure in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma: A randomized clinical trial
This study showed that when people with a specific eye condition did regular jogging, their eye pressure went down — kind of like how your heart beats faster when you run. But it didn't prove that exercise stops the disease from getting worse — just that it changed one number (eye pressure) for a few months.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
This study looked at whether walking or jogging helps people with glaucoma lower the pressure inside their eyes.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 575 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1A 2–3 mmHg drop in eye pressure is clinically meaningful — each 1 mmHg drop reduces glaucoma progression risk by about 10%.
- 2After one workout: eye pressure dropped by 2.37 mmHg with light exercise and 5.95 mmHg with harder exercise.
- 3After 3 months of daily morning jogging: eye pressure dropped by 2–3 mmHg all day, especially in the morning.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Indian Journal of Ophthalmology
Year
2022
Authors
Qiuyan Ma, Jian Zhou, Yuhang Xue, Yan-ting Xia, Jian-guo Wu, Ying-xin Yang
Related Content
Claims (6)
People who regularly do aerobic exercise have lower rates of glaucoma, which is linked to better blood flow to the optic nerve and slightly lower eye pressure.
In people with primary open-angle glaucoma who use prostaglandin eye drops, 10 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise lowers eye pressure by 2.37 mmHg, and 5 minutes of high-intensity aerobic exercise lowers it by an additional 5.95 mmHg compared to moderate exercise.
In people with primary open-angle glaucoma who use prostaglandin eye drops, one session of aerobic exercise raises ocular perfusion pressure by about 5.3 mmHg, increasing the pressure difference between blood pressure in the body and pressure inside the eye.
In patients with primary open-angle glaucoma taking prostaglandin therapy, three months of morning aerobic exercise at 50–70% target heart rate for 30 minutes at least 20 times per month lowers average 24-hour intraocular pressure by 2–3 mmHg, with the largest drops occurring in the morning.
In people with primary open-angle glaucoma, those who start with higher eye pressure experience larger reductions in eye pressure after aerobic exercise.
In people with primary open-angle glaucoma, aerobic exercise does not change systemic blood pressure whether the exercise lasts a short time or a long time.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.