SUBFOVEAL CHOROIDAL THICKNESS AND VASCULAR ARCHITECTURE IN FELLOW EYES OF PATIENTS WITH CIRCUMSCRIBED CHOROIDAL HEMANGIOMA

Abstract

Purpose: 

To evaluate the subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) and vascular architecture in the fellow eyes of patients with circumscribed choroidal hemangioma (CCH).

Methods: 

In this retrospective observational study, patients were selected from outpatient ophthalmology clinics at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York. Subfoveal choroidal thickness was measured using enhanced depth imaging spectral domain optical coherence tomography from the outer portion of Bruch membrane to the choroidal–scleral interface. Choroidal vascular architecture was qualitatively examined. The main outcome measure was SFCT in fellow eyes of patients with CCH, which was compared with an age- and gender-matched control group.

Results: 

Thirty-one fellow eyes (15 right eyes and 16 left eyes) of patients with CCH (23 males and 8 females) were examined. The fellow eye had a mean SFCT of 361.2 ± 99.9 μm compared with 252.0 ± 77.6 μm in the control group (P < 0.0001). Vascular architecture was disorganized in 13 (42%) fellow eyes and 1 (3%) control eye (P < 0.0001), with no apparent gradient of vessel sizes or discrete choroidal layers. The normal association between older age and a thinner choroid existed in control eyes but not in fellow eyes. Hemangioma thickness measured by ultrasound and the presence of subfoveal fluid in the CCH eye did not correlate with the fellow-eye SFCT.

Conclusion: 

In patients with CCH, fellow eyes had thicker SFCT when compared with age- and gender-matched control eyes. Choroidal architecture was often irregular, without segmented vascular layers. These findings suggest that inherent choroidal changes may exist in patients with CCH.

In Brief

This research demonstrates that the subfoveal choroid is thicker in fellow eyes of patients with circumscribed choroidal hemangioma. Many of these fellow eyes exhibit irregular choroidal vascular architecture, characterized by an attenuation or absence of segmented vascular layers. These findings suggest that inherent choroidal changes may exist in patients with circumscribed choroidal hemangioma.