Choroidal thickness and primary open-angle glaucoma: a cross-sectional study and meta-analysis

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Imaging
• Glaucoma Research

Background:

• Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is a leading cause of irreversible blindness.
• Choroidal thickness is a potential biomarker in ocular diseases.
• Understanding choroidal changes in POAG is crucial for diagnosis and management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate choroidal thickness in Chinese patients with POAG compared to healthy controls.
• To utilize enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) for precise measurements.
• To perform a meta-analysis to strengthen the findings.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study measuring macular choroidal thickness with EDI-OCT.
• Univariate and multivariate regression analyses to identify associated clinical factors.
• Meta-analysis of existing studies to determine pooled estimates of choroidal thickness differences.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in macular choroidal thickness were found between POAG patients and healthy controls after adjusting for IOP, age, and axial length.
• Choroidal thickness did not correlate with visual field defects in POAG patients.
• Meta-analysis results for subfoveal and mean macular choroidal thickness showed no significant differences; peripapillary thickness showed a borderline significant difference potentially due to instrument error.

Conclusions:

• Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is not significantly associated with marked choroidal thinning or thickening based on EDI-OCT measurements.
• Choroidal thickness may not be a reliable indicator for POAG in the studied population.
• Further research may explore other ocular parameters in POAG.