Association Between Subfoveal Choroidal Thickness, Reticular Pseudodrusen, and Geographic Atrophy in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Abstract

To compare subfoveal choroidal thickness (CT) measurements in eyes with nonexudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in the presence or absence of reticular pseudodrusen (RPD). Subfoveal CT measurements obtained from patients with AMD enrolled in the COMPLETE study (30 drusen-only eyes and 30 eyes with geographic atrophy [GA]) were compared with an age-distributed normal control group. Multimodal images were evaluated to detect the presence of RPD. After controlling for age and axial length, the mean CT was significantly thinner in the GA group with RPD (213.7 ± 53.1 µm) than in the GA group without RPD (335.3 ± 123.2 µm; P = .001). The mean CT in the GA group without RPD was not statistically different from the mean CT in the normal control group (P = .076) or the drusen group without RPD (P = .45). In eyes without RPD, there was a correlation between the increasing size of GA and a decrease in CT measurements. Subfoveal choroidal thinning in eyes with nonexudative AMD was associated with the presence of RPD. In the absence of RPD, CT only decreased as the size of GA increased.