Retinal nerve fiber layer thickness changes following optic neuritis caused by multiple sclerosis.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness with scanning laser polarimetry in patients with optic neuritis (ON) caused by multiple sclerosis.

METHODS

Peripapillary RNFL thickness was measured with a GDx VCC in 14 eyes of 13 patients with ON (nonrecurrent group), in 18 eyes of 11 patients with recurrent ON (recurrent group), and in 48 eyes of 48 healthy subjects (healthy group). The temporal, superior, nasal, inferior thickness (TSNIT) average, superior average, and inferior average of GDx VCC measurements were compared across the three groups. We calculated correlation coefficients between each of the three GDx VCC parameters and both the mean deviation (MD) of the Humphrey 30-2 full threshold visual field and the visual acuity (VA).

RESULTS

The three parameters showed statistically significant differences across the three groups. There was no correlation between any of the three GDx VCC parameters and MD or VA in the nonrecurrent group, but there was significant correlation between each of the three GDx VCC parameters and MD in the recurrent group.

CONCLUSIONS

ON caused morphological changes in the peripapillary RNFL, and recurrent ON aggravated the deterioration and caused diffuse rather than regional damage to the peripapillary RNFL.