Choroidal thickness in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study

To investigate choroidal thickness in pregnant women and compare the measurements with those of normal nonpregnant women.

Using enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT), choroidal thickness was measured at the fovea and at 1 mm and 3 mm superior, inferior, temporal, and nasal to the fovea in both healthy pregnant women and nonpregnant women. Pearson correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the relationships between subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) and the demographic and ocular parameters. Pooled odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using fixed-effects model when Meta-analyses were conducted.

Comparison of choroidal thickness between the groups showed that it was significantly greater in healthy pregnant women's eyes than in normal nonpregnant women's eyes at all locations except at 3 mm superior and 3 mm temporal from the fovea (P<0.05). The mean SFCT was 344.13±50.94 µm in healthy pregnant women's eyes and 315.03±60.57 µm in normal nonpregnant women's eyes, with a statistically significant difference (P=0.008). Pearson correlation analysis showed that age and axial length were significantly related to SFCT in healthy pregnant women, normal nonpregnant women, and all subjects. The results of our cross-sectional study were consistent with the results of the further Meta-analysis, with a pooled weighted mean difference (WMD) of 33.66 µm (95% CI: 26.16 to 41.15) for SFCT.

Our results, along with the comprehensive Meta-analysis, suggest that choroidal thickness in healthy pregnant women is greater than that in normal nonpregnant women.