Peripapillary Choroidal Thickness in Adult Chinese: The Beijing Eye Study.

PURPOSE

To measure peripapillary choroidal thickness (PPCT) and to assess its associations.

METHODS

The population-based cross-sectional Beijing Eye Study 2011 included 3468 participants. Detailed medical and ophthalmic examinations were performed. We measured PPCT by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) with a 3.4-mm scan circle centered on the optic nerve head.

RESULTS

Peripapillary choroidal thickness measurements were available for 3060 (88.2%) study participants with a mean age of 64.4 ± 9.6 years (range, 50-93 years). Mean global PPCT was 134 ± 53 μm (range, 35-348 μm). Peripapillary choroid was thickest in the superior region (155 ± 60 μm), followed by the temporal region (144 ± 75 μm; P 0.05) associated with blood pressure, blood concentration of lipids, intraocular pressure and prevalence of glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and retinal vein occlusions. The decrease of PPCT with longer axial length occurred predominantly in the temporal region.

CONCLUSIONS

Peripapillary choroidal thickness is thickest superiorly and thinnest inferiorly. It decreases by 2 μm per year of life and by 5 μm per diopter of myopia. Thinner PPCT is correlated with larger parapapillary α and β zones. The association of thinner PPCT with lower best corrected visual acuity may warrant further study.