title: Choroidal thickness in open-angle glaucoma measured by spectral-domain scanning laser ophthalmoscopy/optical coherence tomography.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To measure macular choroidal thickness in healthy and glaucomatous eyes using spectral-domain scanning laser ophthalmoscopy/optical coherence tomography.
  
  
  METHODS
  Choroidal thickness was measured in 21 healthy eyes and 16 glaucomatous eyes. Choroidal thickness was measured under the fovea and at 500-µm intervals from the foveal center to 4 mm in the nasal and temporal directions. Vessels were counted in a macular area of 8,000 µm(2). Only choroidal vessels with a horizontal diameter of at least 155 µm and a vertical diameter of at least 50 µm were considered.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean choroidal thickness was greatest below the fovea, i.e. 343.8 µm (SD ± 29.06) in controls and 411.56 µm (SD ± 33.60; p < 0.001) in the glaucomatous group. The mean vertical diameter was significantly greater (p = 0.008) in glaucomatous eyes (112.18 ± 37.64 µm) than in healthy eyes (103.98 ± 25.67 µm), whereas the luminal area of vessels was significantly larger (p = 0.3) in glaucomatous eyes (39,157.34 ± 21,657.23 µm(2)) than in healthy eyes (43,779.84 ± 22,874.87 µm(2)).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We show that choroidal thickness is increased in glaucomatous eyes due to an increase in both the vertical diameter and the luminal area of the vessels. This seems to implicate the choroid in the pathogenesis of open-angle glaucoma.
authors.affiliation: Eye Department, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy. xgilda @ hotmail.com
authors.forename: Gilda
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cennamo
authors.forename: Marialuisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Finelli
authors.forename: Gennarfrancesco
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Iaccarino
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: de Crecchio
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cennamo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002829:Choroid / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000473:pathology*; D015862:Choroid Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007834:Lasers; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009887:Ophthalmoscopy; D009929:Organ Size; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence