Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 17, 2026
In vivo Structural Assessments of Ocular Disease in Rodent Models using Optical Coherence Tomography
Published on: July 24, 2020
Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in children with β-thalassemia major
Feyzahan Uzun1, Emine Esra Karaca2, Gönül Yıldız Yerlikaya3
1Department of Ophthalmology, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan University, Rize, Turkey.
Purpose:
To measure the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) in children with β-thalassemia major and to compare with healthy controls.
Methods:
A total of 47 patients with β-thalassemia major and 51 healthy controls were included. Each subject underwent a standard ophthalmological examination. RNFLT measurements were performed using optical coherence tomography.
Results:
Mean age of the patient group and healthy controls were 13.7 ± 2.1 and 14.3 ± 2.2 years, respectively. Mean peripapillary RNFL thickness was 94 µm in the patient group, and 100 µm in the control group (p < 0.01). In patients with β-thalassemia major, RNFL was thinner in all quadrants than control subjects. Within the β-thalassemia major group neither average RNFLT nor each four quadrant RNFLT were correlated with the age, serum ferritin or serum hemoglobin levels (p > 0.05).
Conclusion:
In this study, we observed RNFL was thinner in patients with β-thalassemia major. Thinning of RNFL did not correlate with hemoglobin or ferritin levels.
