Comparison and correlation of choroidal parameters in children and adolescents with different refractive status / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

ABSTRACT

AIM:To compare the choroidal parameters in children and adolescents with different refractive status, and to investigate the associations between ocular biometrics and choroidal parameters.METHODS:A cross sectional study. A total of 121 healthy children and adolescents(121 right eyes)aged 3-18 years treated in the Second People's Hospital of Hefei were collected. The data were divided into three groups according to spherical equivalent refraction(SER) emmetropia(-0.50<SER≤+1.75D), low myopia(-3.00<SER≤-0.50D)and moderate-to-high myopia(SER≤-3.00D). Ocular biometrics were measured by using the IOL Master. Data of the choroidal structures extracted from a 6mm sub-macular region centered on the fovea, including choroidal thickness(CT), the total choroidal area(TCA), luminal area(LA), stromal area(SA)and choroidal vascularity index(CVI)were determined by image binarization of the enhanced depth imaging-optical coherence tomography(EDI-OCT). Comparing all biology parameters among the three groups, associations among demographic factors, ocular parameters, and choroidal structures were evaluated by using multiple linear regression analysis.RESULTS:TCA, LA, SA and CT were all different among the three groups before age correction(all P<0.001), and CVI was not different(P >0.05). TCA, LA, SA, CT and CVI were found to be statistically different among the three groups after age correction(all P<0.001), and there were differences in pairwise comparisons of TCA, LA, SA and CT among the three groups(all P<0.001), which were the highest in emmetropic eyes and lowest in moderate-to-high myopic eyes, However, the CVI in pairwise comparisons among the three groups showed that only the moderate-to-high myopia group was significantly lower than the emmetropic group(P=0.014). Multiple regression analysis showed that the LA was significantly associated with SER(P=0.020), whereas CT were significantly associated with the axial length(AL)(P=0.028).CONCLUSIONS: The choroidal LA and CVI tend to decrease in children and adolescents with higher myopia, indicating that the decrease of sub-foveal choroidal blood flow may be related to the progression of myopia.