Abstract
Background/Objectives
Choroidal thinning has been suggested in Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON). No study has been conducted of the choroid in relation to the retinal ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (RGC-IPL). We sought to measure choroidal thickness in chronic LHON and to correlate thickness changes with the RGC-IPL.
Subjects/Methods
Chronic LHON, 11778 mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation, patients (26 eyes; mean age: 35.1 ± 16.1 years) were prospectively recruited at Doheny Eye Center, University of California Los Angeles from March 2016 to July 2017. Age-matched healthy controls (27 eyes; mean age: 32.4 ± 11.1 years) were enroled for comparison. Swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) imaging was performed in chronic LHON patients and compared with age-matched healthy controls.
Results
The macular choroid was significantly thinner in chronic LHON (250.5 ± 62.2 μm) compared with controls (313.9 ± 60.2 μm; p < 0.0001). The peripapillary choroid was also significantly thinner in chronic LHON (135.7 ± 51.4 μm) compared with controls (183.0 ± 61.8 μm, p < 0.001). Choroidal thickness strongly correlated with retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness in both the macular (R2 = 0.72; 95% CI, 0.57–0.84) and peripapillary regions (R2 = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.31–0.70). Choroidal thickness was also significantly correlated with macular RGC-IPL thickness (R2 = 0.51; 95% CI, 0.26–0.73).
Conclusions
Choroidal thinning in chronic LHON correlated strongly with both RNFL and RGC-IPL thicknesses. These findings may suggest a pathophysiological mechanism involving vascular pathology of the choroid in relation to the retinal ganglion cell complex in LHON.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Doheny Eye Center and UCLA for providing a collaborative effort in understanding a unique cohort of participants affected with LHON.
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Darvizeh, F., Asanad, S., Falavarjani, K.G. et al. Choroidal thickness and the retinal ganglion cell complex in chronic Leberʼs hereditary optic neuropathy: a prospective study using swept-source optical coherence tomography. Eye 34, 1624–1630 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-019-0695-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-019-0695-5
