Choroidal thickness in Chinese patients with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy.

Libin Jiang,Timothy Y Y Lai,Ran Jiang,Lanlan Chen,Yaxing Wang,Liang Xu,Xiujuan Qiu

doi:10.1186/s12886-016-0313-2

Abstract

BackgroundNon-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NA-AION) is one of the most common types of ischemic optic neuropathy. Several recent studies suggested that abnormalities of choroidal thickness might be associated with NA-AION. The main objective of this case–control study was to evaluate whether choroidal thickness is an ocular risk factor for the development of NA-AION by evaluating the peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thicknesses in affected Chinese patients.MethodsForty-four Chinese patients with unilateral NA-AION were recruited and compared with 60 eyes of 60 normal age and refractive-error matched control subjects. Peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thicknesses were measured by enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography. Choroidal thicknesses of eyes with NA-AION and unaffected fellow eyes were compared with normal controls. Choroidal thicknesses of NA-AION eyes with or without optic disc edema were also compared. The correlation between choroidal thickness and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness, logMAR best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), and the mean deviation (MD) of Humphrey static perimetry in NA-AION eyes were analyzed.ResultsThe peripapillary choroidal thicknesses at the nasal, nasal inferior and temporal inferior segments in NA-AION eyes with optic disc edema were significantly thicker compared with that of normal subjects (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the choroidal thicknesses between the unaffected fellow eyes of NA-AION patients and normal eyes of healthy controls; or between the NA-AION eyes with resolved optic disc edema and normal eyes (all P > 0.05). No significant correlation between choroidal thickness and RNFL thickness, logMAR BCVA and perimetry MD was found in eyes affected by NA-AION (all P > 0.05).ConclusionsIncrease in peripapillary choroid thickness in some segments was found in NA-ION eyes with optic disc edema. However, our findings do not support the hypothesis that choroidal thickness is abnormal in Chinese patients with NA-AION compared with normal subjects with similar age and refractive error status.

Highlights

Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NA-AION) is one of the most common types of ischemic optic neuropathy
There was no significant difference in the baseline characteristics including mean age, axial length and refractive error between the NA-AION patients with or without optic disc edema and controls
As no significant difference was found in the mean age, refractive error and axial length between the NA-AION patients and the control group, we evaluated the peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thicknesses of Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAAION) eyes and compared with normal eyes without adjusting for age, axial length and refractive error

Summary

Introduction

Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NA-AION) is one of the most common types of ischemic optic neuropathy. The main objective of this case–control study was to evaluate whether choroidal thickness is an ocular risk factor for the development of NA-AION by evaluating the peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thicknesses in affected Chinese patients. Fard et al [8] recently found that peripapillary choroidal thickness in Iranian NA-AION patients was thicker than control eyes It is unknown whether choroidal thickness in Chinese NA-AION patients is normal or not. The aim of our study was to measure the peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thicknesses in Chinese patients with NA-AION and compare with normal eyes of healthy subjects in order to assess whether choroidal thickness is another ocular risk factor for the development of NA-AION

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