title: Correlation of choroidal thickness with serum cortisol level.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim was to investigate the correlation of serum cortisol level with choroidal thickness.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-six healthy volunteers had no visual complaints or history of ocular disease. Subfoveal choroidal thickness at the foveal centre was measured with spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Morning serum cortisol levels were obtained at 8:00 am immediately following the SD-OCT measurement. Measurements of only the right eyes were included in the study. Age, gender, axial length and spherical equivalent were noted. Correlation of choroidal thickness with age, gender, axial length, spherical equivalent and serum cortisol level were investigated with linear and multiple regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Sixty-six eyes of 66 patients were evaluated. Mean age was 43.4 ± 3.6 years (range: 40 to 53 years), mean spherical equivalent was -0.15 D (range: -1.25 to +1.50 D), mean axial length was 23.2 mm (range; 22.0 to 23.7 mm), mean choroidal thickness was 317.9 ± 45.1 μm (range: 206 to 394 μm). Age and spherical equivalent were not significantly correlated with choroidal thickness. Axial length had a strong negative correlation with choroidal thickness (R(2): 0.488, p = 0.000). There was no significant correlation between serum cortisol level and choroidal thickness (R(2): 0.034, p = 0.139).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results did not reveal any correlation between serum cortisol level and choroidal thickness. We believe that more prospective studies are needed to determine the relationship of cortisol and other hormones with choroidal thickness.
authors.affiliation: Egepol Hospital, Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Eyyup
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Karahan
authors.affiliation: Izmir University, Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mehmet Ozgur
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Zengin
authors.affiliation: Retinagoz Eye Center, Alsancak, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Rukiye
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aydin
authors.affiliation: Dokuz Eylul University Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey. karahaneyup@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Taylan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ozturk
authors.affiliation: Dokuz Eylul University Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mahmut
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaya
authors.affiliation: Dokuz Eylul University Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nilufer
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kocak
authors.affiliation: Dokuz Eylul University Department of Ophthalmology, Izmir, Turkey.
authors.forename: Suleyman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kaynak
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D056833:Central Serous Chorioretinopathy / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D002829:Choroid / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: choroidal thickness; serum cortisol; spectral domain optical coherence tomography