Measurement of subfoveal choroidal thickness using spectral domain optical coherence tomography

To compare subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) in normal patients and those with known ocular pathology using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT).

This retrospective, observational case series was conducted at a tertiary care center where 194 consecutive eyes from 102 patients were imaged. Patients were not included or excluded based on presence or absence of pathology. One masked observer imaged the choroid and a second masked observer measured SFCT. Multivariate analysis was used and a statistical model created to analyze the changes in SFCT induced by age, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, wet and dry age-related macular degeneration, and other posterior pole pathology.

The mean SFCT of the 194 eyes studied was 246.59 ± 93.17 μm with a mean age of 55.50 ± 19.70 years. A strong negative relationship was found between age and SFCT (R(2) = 0.42), with an average 3.09-μm decrease in SFCT per additional year of age. Subgroup analysis demonstrated that patients with diabetic retinopathy, wet or dry age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma all had SFCT measurements that were statistically significantly less than those of normal patients. However, when regression analysis was used to control for age, this difference was no longer significant.

No differences were found in SFCT in patients with glaucoma, macular degeneration, or diabetic retinopathy compared to eyes lacking pathology when age was counted as a confounding variable. Age has a strong inverse relationship with SFCT, independently confirming prior studies and creating a foundation for more research on the relationship between ocular pathology and choroidal thickness.