title: Analysis of Retinal Peripapillary Segmentation in Early Alzheimer's Disease Patients.
abstract: Decreased thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) may reflect retinal neuronal-ganglion cell death. A decrease in the RNFL has been demonstrated in Alzheimer's disease (AD) in addition to aging by optical coherence tomography (OCT). Twenty-three mild-AD patients and 28 age-matched control subjects with mean Mini-Mental State Examination 23.3 and 28.2, respectively, with no ocular disease or systemic disorders affecting vision, were considered for study. OCT peripapillary and macular segmentation thickness were examined in the right eye of each patient. Compared to controls, eyes of patients with mild-AD patients showed no statistical difference in peripapillary RNFL thickness (P > 0.05); however, sectors 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, and 11 of the papilla showed thinning, while in sectors 1, 5, 6, 7, and 10 there was thickening. Total macular volume and RNFL thickness of the fovea in all four inner quadrants and in the outer temporal quadrants proved to be significantly decreased (P < 0.01). Despite the fact that peripapillary RNFL thickness did not statistically differ in comparison to control eyes, the increase in peripapillary thickness in our mild-AD patients could correspond to an early neurodegeneration stage and may entail the existence of an inflammatory process that could lead to progressive peripapillary fiber damage.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Salobrar-Garcia
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hoyas
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Mercedes
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leal
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Óptica y Optometría UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: de Hoz
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Blanca
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rojas
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Óptica y Optometría UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Óptica y Optometría UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Salazar
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Geriatría, Hospital Universitario Clínico San Carlos, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yubero
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Servicio de Geriatría, Hospital Universitario Clínico San Carlos, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Triviño
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Oftalmológicas Ramón Castroviejo, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain ; Departamento de Oftalmología y ORL, Facultad de Medicina, UCM, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: José M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ramirez
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000473:pathology*; D009898:Optic Disk / Q000473:pathology*; D012160:Retina / Q000473:pathology*; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods