Decreased retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in patients with congenital isolated growth hormone deficiency

To evaluate the optic disc topography parameters of children with congenital isolated growth hormone deficiency (GHD) using the Heidelberg retina tomograph (HRT) in a controlled study.

This prospective study included 32 eyes of 32 patients with congenital isolated GHD and 36 eyes of 36 healthy subjects. The topographic optic disc parameters (mean cup volume, rim volume, cup area, disc area, rim area, mean cup-to-disc ratio and cup depth, retinal nerve fiber layer thickness [RNFL]) were imaged in all subjects with HRT-III (software 3.01 a-M). Pearson correlation analysis was used to investigate the correlation between right and left eyes regarding the optic disc parameters. Differences between the 2 groups were evaluated by independent t test, Mann-Whitney U test, and chi-square test.

The mean RNFL thickness in children with congenital isolated GHD was found to be statistically significantly thinner than in healthy subjects (p<0.05). However, no statistically significant differences were found between the mean cup volume, rim volume, cup area, disc area, rim area, mean cup-to-disc ratio and cup depth, and mean sectorial RNFL thickness (p>0.05).

The results suggest that congenital GHD may lead to thinner RNFL thickness when compared with healthy subjects. This indicates that GH has an important role in the development of the neural retina.