Effects of physical exercise on macular vessel density and choroidal thickness in children

Xue Li,Hao Chen,Yiguo Pan,Jingjing Xu,Daniel P. Spiegel,Jinhua Bao,Shufeng Li

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-81770-y

Xue Li, Hao Chen + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81770-y

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Abstract

We used swept-source (SS) optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) to investigate the effects of moderate physical exercise on retinal and choroidal vessel densities (VDs) and thicknesses in children. One eye in each of 40 myopic children (mean age, 11.70 years) and 18 emmetropic children (mean age, 11.06 years) were included. SS-OCT 6 × 6-mm radial scans and SS-OCTA 3 × 3-mm images were centered on the macula. Heart rate (HR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and intraocular pressure (IOP) were recorded before and immediately after a 20-min stationary cycling exercise and after a 30-min rest. The subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT), choroidal thickness (CT), and VD at the superficial and deep retinal layers, choriocapillaris, and deeper choroidal vessels were determined. SFCT and CT were significantly lower at all locations immediately after exercise (p < 0.001) and did not fully recover after rest (p < 0.05). VD was lower in the deep retinal layer after exercise (p = 0.02) and higher in the superficial layer after rest (p = 0.03) in myopic eyes while it was higher in the superficial (p < 0.01) and deep layer (p < 0.01) after rest in emmetropic eyes. No significant exercise-related changes in the superficial retinal VD, choroidal VD, or IOP were observed. ΔCT% and ΔSFCT% were significantly correlated with increases in HR in myopic group (p = 0.04 and p = 0.03, respectively). Exercise increased retinal VD after rest in emmetropic eyes, and caused significant CT thinning that lasted for at least 30 min in both emmetropic and myopic eyes.

Highlights

We used swept-source (SS) optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) to investigate the effects of moderate physical exercise on retinal and choroidal vessel densities (VDs) and thicknesses in children
The mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and Heart rate (HR) were significantly higher after 20 min of exercise than before, changing from 98.65 ± 8.16 to 132.0 ± 9.77 mmHg, from 75.03 ± 5.70 to 87.85 ± 6.00 mmHg, and from 79.23 ± 12.45 to 138.15 ± 11.19 bpm, respectively
We evaluated the effects of physical exercise on the choroidal thickness (CT) and VD in the eyes of myopic and emmetropic children 9–13 years old, and we evaluated correlations among systemic dynamic parameters and the ocular changes

Summary

Introduction

We used swept-source (SS) optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) to investigate the effects of moderate physical exercise on retinal and choroidal vessel densities (VDs) and thicknesses in children. Vo Kim et al.[6] reported that the vessel density (VD) at the level of the retinal superficial layer, from 3 μm below the internal limiting membrane (ILM) to 15 μm below the inner plexiform layer (IPL), were decreased after exercise while the fractal dimension in the retinal deep layer, from 15 to 70 μm below the IPL, were significantly increased. Hayashi et al.[7] found that the blood flow and vascular conductance of retinal arterioles remained stable while ocular blood flow increased in the retina and choroid during physical exercise. The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of exercise-induced changes in retinal VD (RVD), choroidal VD (CVD), and CT in children. RVD, CVD, and CT, and we evaluated correlations between these ocular parameters and systemic physiological parameters

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