ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To compile a multicenter normative database of retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) and macular thicknesses and macular volume values in healthy Caucasian children 4-17 years using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). To analyse variations in the OCT measurements as a function of age, sex, refraction, and axial length (AL). METHODS: An observational, multicenter and cross-sectional study among 301 healthy Caucasian children recruited at three Spanish centres was performed. To compile the database, each child underwent a dilated eye examination and a cycloplegic refraction, five AL measurements (IOL Master; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, CA, USA), five OCT scans with Cirrus OCT: three peripapillary RNFL scans (Optic Disc Cube 200X200 protocol) and two macular scans (Macular Cube 512X128 protocol). One eye of each subject was selected randomly for analysis. RESULTS: Two hundred eighty-three children (117 boys, 41.34%; 166 girls, 58.66%) were included in this study. The mean age of the children was 9.58 ± 3.12 years (range, 4-17). The mean SE was +0.63 ± 1.65 D; (range, -4.88 to +5.25). The mean AL was 22.94 ± 1.10 mm (range, 20.10-26.27). The mean global RNFL thickness was 97.40 ± 9.0 µm (range, 77-121.7 µm). Multivariate analysis showed a positive correlation between the RNFL and spherical equivalent (SE) (p = 0.014). The mean central macular thickness was 253.85 ± 19.76 µm, the average thickness 283.62 ± 14.08 µm, and the mean macular volume 10.22 ± 0.49 µm(3) . Multivariate analysis showed a positive correlation between central macular thickness and age (p < 0.001). Boys had a significantly thicker central macula than girls (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Normative paediatric SD-OCT data might facilitate use of SD-OCT for assessing childhood ophthalmic diseases. This study provides a multicenter paediatric normative database of SD-OCT peripapillary RNFL and macular data.
