Choroidal Vascularity Index Changes in Treatment-Naïve Hypercholesterolemia Patients

To measure the choroidal vascularity index (CVI) in newly diagnosed hypercholesterolemia patients.

This cross-sectional study included 50 treatment-naïve hypercholesterolemia patients and 50 age-matched healthy controls. None of the patients had other systemic diseases. CVI in the patient and control groups was compared. In addition, the effect of lipid levels on CVI was calculated. Analysis of covariance was used to compare groups after adjusting for axial length, age, and sex. The partial correlation coefficient was determined for the correlation between lipid levels and choroidal area in both groups. The level of statistical significance was set at P < 0.05.

CVI was significantly lower in the study group (<0.001). There were no differences in total choroidal area (TCA) (P = 0.141) or luminal area (LA) (P = 0.539) between the groups. The stromal area (SA) was, however, significantly thicker in the patient group than in the control group (P = 0.006). Lipid levels and CVI were not correlated.

The present findings show that hypercholesterolemia patients have a significantly thicker SA and a lower CVI than healthy controls. Interestingly, the increased stromal are in the patients did not result in an increase in the TCA or compressed vascular tissues that would have presented as a reduction in LA. The present findings should be considered preliminary, and additional studies with longer follow-ups may further clarify the effects of increased SA thickness.