Increased choroidal thickness: a new feature to monitor age-related macular degeneration recurrence

The main objective of this study was to assess choroidal thickness (CT) changes during an exudative recurrence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

A real-life prospective non-interventional 9-month study was conducted in two centers in consecutive patients with exudative AMD between November 2016 and July 2017. CT was measured manually in both eyes based on enhanced-depth imaging spectral-domain optical coherence tomography at different follow-up visits scheduled in the morning.

A total of 134 patients were included. Ninety-five patients presented at least one episode, defined by a follow-up visit under controlled condition (dry retina) followed by a visit for exudative recurrence. A total of 119 episodes were analyzed. The mean CT change in the treated eye was + 8.45 ± 13.52 μm (p < 0.001) and + 5.62 ± 14.77 μm (p = 0.009) respectively in the subfoveal area and nasal area. No significant change in CT was observed in the fellow eye. No significant association between CT changes and treatment, number of intravitreal injections, and blood pressure was observed.

CT increased in case of exudative recurrence of neovascular AMD. The increase was mild but significant. Thus, CT could be used as a monitoring criterion, like the central retinal thickness, in AMD management.