Correlation between peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and optic nerve head parameters using spectral...

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Neuro-ophthalmology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Optic nerve head (ONH) parameters and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness are crucial for diagnosing glaucoma and other optic neuropathies.
• Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a key technology for quantifying these structures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between RNFL thickness and ONH parameters in healthy individuals.
• To determine if optic disc size influences RNFL thickness measurements obtained by OCT.

Main Methods:

• Sixty-five healthy participants (65 eyes) aged 13-79 years underwent ONH analysis and peripapillary RNFL thickness measurement using spectral domain OCT.
• RNFL measurements were statistically correlated with ONH parameters, including optic disc area, rim area, and cup area.

Main Results:

• No significant correlation was found between average or quadrant RNFL thickness and optic disc area.
• A positive correlation was observed between average RNFL thickness and rim area (r=0.425, P=0.000).
• A negative correlation was found between average RNFL thickness and cup area (r=-0.249, P<0.046).

Conclusions:

• Peripapillary RNFL thickness, as measured by OCT, does not correlate with optic disc size in healthy individuals.
• Larger optic discs were not associated with thicker RNFL, suggesting interindividual variability in disc area may mask effects on RNFL thickness.
• RNFL thickness is more closely related to the neural rim area than the overall optic disc size.