Choroidal vessel density in unilateral hyperopic amblyopia using en-face optical coherence tomography

Syunsuke Araki,Katsutoshi Goto,Kiyoshi Yaoeda,Goro Maehara,Atsushi Miki,Atsushi Fujiwara,Tsuyoshi Yoneda,Kazuko Haruishi,Tsutomu Yamashita,Yoshiaki Ieki,Junichi Kiryu

doi:10.1186/s12886-020-01735-z

Abstract

BackgroundStructural changes of the choroid, such as choroidal thickening, have been indicated in amblyopic eyes with hyperopic anisometropia as compared to fellow or healthy eyes. The purpose of the present study was to investigate choroidal vascular density (CVD) in children with unilateral hyperopic amblyopia.MethodsThis study included 88 eyes of 44 patients with unilateral amblyopia due to hyperopic anisometropia with or without strabismus and 29 eyes of 29 age-matched normal controls. The CVD of Haller’s layer was quantified from en-face images constructed by 3-dimensional swept-source optical coherence tomography images flattened relative to Bruch’s membrane. The analysis area was a 3 × 3-mm square of macula after magnification correction. Relationships between CVD and other parameters [best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), refractive error and subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT)] were investigated, and CVDs were compared between amblyopic, fellow, and normal control eyes.ResultsMean CVD was 59.11 ± 0.66% in amblyopic eyes, 59.23 ± 0.81% in fellow eyes, and 59.29 ± 0.74% in normal control eyes. CVD showed a significant positive relationship with SFCT (p = 0.004), but no relationships with other parameters. No significant differences in CVD were evident among amblyopic, fellow, and normal control eyes after adjusting for SFCT (p = 0.502).ConclusionsCVD was unrelated to BCVA, and CVD did not differ significantly among amblyopic, fellow and normal control eyes. These results suggest that the local CVD of Haller’s layer is unaffected in unilateral hyperopic amblyopic eyes.

Highlights

Structural changes of the choroid, such as choroidal thickening, have been indicated in amblyopic eyes with hyperopic anisometropia as compared to fellow or healthy eyes
Recent studies using optical coherence tomography (OCT) have shown structural changes to the choroid such as thickening in hyperanisometropic amblyopic eyes compared with that of fellow or healthy eyes, independent of axial length (AL) [2,3,4,5]. In chorioretinal diseases such as central serous chorioretinopathy [6] and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease [7], the pathogenesis and clinical significance of choroidal structural changes is relatively well understood, and OCT findings are utilized for diagnosis and follow-up
Subjects Patients enrolled to this study showed unilateral amblyopia with decimal best-corrected visual acuities (BCVAs) < 0.8 in the amblyopic eye and > 1.0 in the fellow eye at the time of the first visit, due to hyperopic anisometropia with or without strabismus; and age ≦ 18 years

Summary

Introduction

Structural changes of the choroid, such as choroidal thickening, have been indicated in amblyopic eyes with hyperopic anisometropia as compared to fellow or healthy eyes. Recent studies using optical coherence tomography (OCT) have shown structural changes to the choroid such as thickening in hyperanisometropic amblyopic eyes compared with that of fellow or healthy eyes, independent of axial length (AL) [2,3,4,5]. In chorioretinal diseases such as central serous chorioretinopathy [6] and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease [7], the pathogenesis and clinical significance of choroidal structural changes is relatively well understood, and OCT findings are utilized for diagnosis and follow-up. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the clinical significance of evaluating choroidal vascular density (CVD) in patients with amblyopia

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