Abstract
Purpose :
Most studies in diabetic choroidopathy are based in thickness values with controverse findings.
We performed a study to evaluate morphological findings that correlates with thickness changes in different stages of Diabetic retinopathy (DR) using SD-Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT).
Methods :
Diabetic patients with no history of ocular treatment; and age-matched non-diabetic patients as control were included in the study. Diabetic eyes were grouped as no retinopathy (NDR), non proliferative (NPDR), macular edema (ME) and Proliferative (PDR). Choroidal OCT images were analyzed for thickness and morphological changes. Morphological changes were classified based on choroidal-scleral delineation shape (inverted dome shaped or normal and abnormal), irregularity of choriocapillary layer (paralel or abnormal with focal atrophy), and were correlated with suprajacent retina findings for each group.
Results :
Three hundred and two eyes were included, where 192 diabetic eyes (n=101 NDR, n=55 NPDR, n=33 ME, n=3 PDR) and 110 control eyes.
Analysis was made for: 1- Subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) mean values: No significant statistical difference was found between the Diabetic and Control groups although SFCT was slightly higher in the control group; 2- SFCT by Retinopathy Stage:the majority of SFCT was around the mean values calculated, but a shift to lower values on the maculopathy group was found; 3- SFCT individual values (each eye): A great variability of individual thickness values was found which explains the great standard deviation for SFCT found in our and published series.
Analysis of OCT scans for each eye looking for morphological changes: Loss of normal choroidal inverted dome shape and vanishing of large vessels layer in advanced disease; in all eyes with ME focal changes in choroidal vessels and choriocappilary were noticed in subjacent areas of retinal changes suggesting a choroidal vascular recruitment for focal retinal suffering zones.
Conclusions :
Choroidal thickness mean values can create a bias of the results due to the great variability of measurements. Specific choroidal morphological changes of the vascular layers can be identified and better correlates with the subjacent retinal disease with macular edema. These findings suggest that OCT might evidence the role of the choroid in the response to the retinal diabetic disease.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2018 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Honolulu, Hawaii, April 29 - May 3, 2018.