Choroidal thickness in patients with different refractive status measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography

Aim: To evaluate the choroidal thickness in patients with different refractive status measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. Material and methods: This cross-sectional observational study consisted of 60 subjects, who visited the out-patient department of Ophthalmology, Chattrapati Shivaji Subharti Hospital, Meerut, India and were randomly selected over a period of 1 year. Subjects were classified into three groups based on refractive error: those with a +1 diopter or greater refractive power were assigned to the hyperopia group; those with a diopter lower than +1 and greater than –1 were assigned to the emmetropia group; and those with a –1 diopter or lower diopter were assigned to the myopia group. All patients underwent a clinical history taking and a complete ophthalmic examination. OCT scanning was performed using Optovue RTvue 100 which utilises spectral domain (SD)-OCT. The choroid was visualized by enhanced depth imaging (EDI) technique. Choroidal scans were obtained for all the eyes using enhanced depth imaging (EDI) using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Data was recorded in excel sheet and subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Compared to emmetropic participants, myopic subjects had significantly thinner choroid in all the regions. Choroid of hyperopic subjects was significantly thicker than that of emmetropic subjects in most regions. Linear correlation testing revealed a close correlation between refractive error and choroidal thickness in all of the regions. Conclusion: High myopes have significantly thinner choroids than the emmetropic controls at all the retinal points studied, with the thinnest choroid at 1.5 mm nasal to the fovea.