Purpose To analyze and compare choroidal thickness between keratoconus (KC) patients and age-matched non-KC subjects. Methods A cross-sectional, case-control study. One hundred and thirty-four keratoconic eyes and 78 control eyes, from individuals aged from 12 to 30 years old, were studied. Patients with KC followed in Corneal Department of Centro Hospitalar São João, Porto, Portugal, were identified and consecutively included between December 2017 and February 2018. A spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) using depth enhanced imaging was performed, and choroidal thickness in the center of the fovea and at 500 μm intervals along a horizontal section was measured and compared. Results The statistical analysis showed that keratoconic eyes present a thicker choroid in every measured location (p < 0.05). Mean subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) values obtained were 375.86 ± 89.29 and 322.91 ± 85.14 in keratoconus and control groups, respectively (p < 0.001). In a multivariate analysis, SFCT was significantly associated with spherical equivalent (p=0.004) and the presence of keratoconus (p < 0.001), but not with age (p=0.167), gender (p=0.579), or best-corrected visual acuity (p=0.178). In a “fixed model,” keratoconus patients were found to have a 67.55 μm (95% CI 36.61–98.49) thicker subfoveal choroid compared to controls. Conclusion Keratoconus patients seem to have a thicker choroid than healthy individuals. The exact pathophysiological mechanism resulting in a thicker choroid in KC patients is not known, but it could possibly be associated with inflammatory choroidal mechanisms.
PurposeTo investigate cases of visual impairment caused by diabetic retinopathy (DR) in a hospital population.MethodsAs part of an observational study to estimate the prevalence and costs of visual impairment in Portugal (PCVIP study), clinical records of all patients attending the ophthalmology department of a tertiary hospital were analysed looking for patients meeting the inclusion criteria. Inclusion criteria were: (i) presenting visual acuity in the better eye <5/10 (20/40) and/or (ii) visual field <20°. Diagnosis of cases with VI were classified according with ICD9. Results reported here were selected from the total number of patients with VI by filtering ICD9 codes staring by 362.ResultsIn 12 weeks, 1920 cases of VI were detected, 586 (31%) caused by any type of DR. From those: 54% were caused by non‐proliferative‐DR, 40% by proliferative‐DR and 6% by diabetic macular oedema. The mean age of the patients with VI caused by DR was 69.4 (sd = 9.5) years and 57% were female. The estimated hospital prevalence (for 52 weeks) of VI caused by DR is 39% (95%CI = 38–41).ConclusionsOur results show that DR remains the leading cause of VI in the population attending our hospital. Information about the number of patients reaching VI will be fundamental to assess the cost‐benefits of treatments and public health campaigns to reduce the burden of diabetic retinopathy in Portugal.
PurposeThe Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is not a good diagnostic method for uncomplicated angioid streaks. Even the most better resolution imaging forms such as Spectral Domain OCT or Swept Source OCT has no sufficient resolution to distinguish the locations of small splines. The aim of this study is to report the imaging characteristics of uncomplicated angioid streaks using en face Spectral Domain OCT (SD‐OCT).MethodsPatients with uncomplicated angioid streaks were imaged using Spectralis SD‐OCT. A macular cube composed of 248 μm 20° × 15° 19‐line raster scans was obtained. En face SD‐OCT characteristics were evaluated by taking images at the retinal pigment epithelium level taking into account all its thickness.ResultsLarge angioid streaks are visible in en‐face SD‐OCT as a hiporreflective groove structure, representing the pigment epithelium, surrounded by a hiperreflective area that corresponds to its absence.ConclusionsSD‐OCT en face imaging can be used in clinical practice to identify and follow patients with uncomplicated angioid streaks. ‘Follow‐up’ functions of the SD‐OCT may help in the future to better understantd the behavior of these lesions.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.