Physiological changes in retinal layers thicknesses measured with swept source optical coherence tomograph

Abstract

AbstractPurposeTo evaluate the physiological changes of the different layers of the retina measured by the standard protocol and the grid points of the swept source optical coherence tomography (SS‐OCT).MethodsA total of 463 eyes divided into four groups will be analyzed: Group 1 (71 eyes of subjects of 20 and 34 years); Group 2 (65 subjects from 35 to 49 years), Group 3 (with 230 subjects from 50 to 64 years) and Group 4 (97 subjects from 65 to 79 years). Wide protocol of Triton SS‐OCT (Topcon Corporation, Japan) was used to measure thickness of different layers of the retina, retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), ganglion cell layer, and choroid.ResultsTransition from group 2 to group 3 showed the most significant thinning of all the retinal layers, especially in the superior‐temporal quadrant of RNFL, ganglion cell and retinal layers (p < 0.001), and temporal sectors in the choroid layer (p < 0.001). A significant RNFL thickening was found in group 2 compared with group 1 in the superior temporal quadrant (p = 0.001), inferior half (p < 0.001) and temporal half (p = 0.001), and also in the choroid layer (p = 0.001).ConclusionThere is a progressive and physiological thinning of all the layers of the retina from the third decade of life.