Choroidal thickness in patients with a history of retinopathy of prematurity

IMPORTANCE: The cause of reduced vision in patients with a history of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is not yet fully understood. The role of the choroid in ROP remains unknown and existing studies of choroidal thickness in patients with a history of ROP are limited. It might be helpful to understand the association of the choroid with ROP by measuring the choroidal thickness in patients with a history of ROP and correlating these findings with the visual outcome of these patients. OBJECTIVE: To examine choroidal thickness by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography in children with a history of ROP and assess the impact of choroidal thickness on visual acuity. DESIGN: A prospective cross-sectional analysis from August 2011 to September 2012. SETTING: Institutional referral centers. PARTICIPANTS: Children aged 6 to 14 years with a history of ROP were classified into the following 2 groups: patients with a history of threshold ROP and treatment with laser or cryotherapy (treated group) and those with regressed ROP who had not received any treatment (nontreated group). All of the patients had a normal-appearing posterior pole. INTERVENTION: Examinations of visual acuity, refractive errors, and optical components and measurement of choroidal thickness. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Best-corrected visual acuity, optical components, and optical coherence tomography findings. RESULTS: In total, 49 patients were enrolled in the study. Patients in the treated group had a significantly thinner choroidal thickness than the patients in the nontreated group after adjusting for age, axial length, and spherical power. Choroidal thickness was found to be positively associated with spherical power and spherical equivalent and negatively associated with axial length and vitreous depth. In addition, a thin choroidal thickness was associated with a worse best-corrected visual acuity. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Choroidal thickness is thinner in patients with threshold ROP compared with the patients with spontaneously regressed ROP. A thinner choroid is associated with worse vision in these patients. This study might imply the association of choroid circulation with ROP.