COMPARISON OF CHOROIDAL VASCULATURE BETWEEN CENTRAL SEROUS CHORIORETINOPATHY WITH AND WITHOUT THICK CHOROID USING SWEPT-SOURCE OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY ANGIOGRAPHY.

PURPOSE: To distinguish between central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) with and without thick choroid and to elucidate their characteristics of choroidal vasculature.

METHODS

This prospective observational study enrolled 76 eyes with treatment-naive CSC and 76 normal eyes. Mean + 2 times SD of subfoveal choroidal thickness of healthy individuals was set as the upper limit of normal choroidal thickness to divide patients with CSC into two groups: the thick-choroid and non-thick-choroid groups. Their choroid blood flow was compared using widefield swept-source optical coherence tomography angiography.

RESULTS

According to the discrimination value of subfoveal choroidal thickness as 326.8 µm, 76 eyes with CSC were divided into the thick-choroid (55, 72.4%) and non-thick-choroid (21, 27.6%) groups. Higher proportions of vortex vein anastomosis were found in the thick-choroid group (81.8% vs. 33.3%, P < 0.001). Choroid thickness, three-dimensional choroidal vascularity index, and mean choroidal stroma volume per 1 mm2 were higher in the thick-choroid group. In multivariate analysis, younger age, higher percentages of vortex vein anastomosis, and double layer sign were the independent predictors of choroid thickening in CSC.

CONCLUSION

There are discrepancies in the degree of choroidal congestion and distribution of vortex veins in the CSC with different choroidal thicknesses.