Lamina cribrosa depth in healthy eyes

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Optometry
• Anatomy

Background:

• The lamina cribrosa (LC) is a critical optic nerve head structure.
• Understanding its depth is vital for diagnosing optic neuropathies.
• Enhanced depth imaging (EDI) spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) allows for detailed LC imaging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the anterior lamina cribrosa surface (ALCS) depth in healthy eyes.
• To establish normative ALCS depth ranges using EDI SD-OCT.
• To identify factors influencing ALCS depth.

Main Methods:

• EDI SD-OCT was used to acquire serial horizontal B-scans of the optic nerve head in 150 healthy subjects.
• ALCS depth was measured from equidistant planes within each eye.
• Intereye comparisons and a linear mixed model were employed to analyze ALCS depth variations.

Main Results:

• The average ALCS depth was 402.06 ± 101.46 μm, with a wide range (193.08-826.81 μm).
• No significant difference in ALCS depth was found between right and left eyes, but a strong intereye correlation existed.
• ALCS depth was greater in males and in eyes with shorter axial length, with regional variations observed.

Conclusions:

• This study provides normative data for ALCS depth in healthy individuals.
• ALCS depth is influenced by sex and axial length.
• These findings contribute to a better understanding of optic nerve head anatomy.